


Forget Me Not

by theshayshay



Category: Pocket Monsters: Gold & Silver & Crystal | Pokemon Gold Silver Crystal Versions, Pokemon, Pokemon SoulSilver/HeartGold
Genre: Gen, Multi, Other, Pokemon Fanfiction, Pokemon Journey, Pokemon Nuzlocke
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-04
Updated: 2016-12-01
Packaged: 2018-04-29 20:45:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 105,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5141906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theshayshay/pseuds/theshayshay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A woman is found on the outskirts of New Bark Town, without memory of who she was or where she'd come from. Thanks to a smug little Totodile, however, she's not going to have an easy time in figuring things out as she journeys through Johto to search for answers.</p><p>Based on the SoulSilver/HeartGold Pokemon Games, this is a Nuzlocke Challenge in the form of the written word rather than the usual storytelling media of comics.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Wake Up

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**
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> **Note: After much talk with a fellow writer, and slight collaboration on ideas-and permissible borrowing of his character for this story-I have taken up a Nuzlocke Challenge, via writing, since it would take me forever to create even one comic page for the comic challenge. :P But, all in all, I blame this friend of mine. Well. I can't blame the entire thing on him. But he is an enabler who cranked up the dial to eleven. Then broke it off. So the ideas wouldn't stop. He's terrible like that. I love it. :P**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“My whole world turned upside down. I can adjust.”_ **  
-Dr. Temperance Brennan, “ _Bones_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

They asked questions…a lot of them. She honestly couldn’t remember half of them, and she didn’t think she had an answer for even a quarter of them, never mind half.

_Where are you from?_

_How did you get here?_

_Where’s your team?_

_What’s your name?_

No trainer license, no registration, no team, no nothing, except for whatever she had on her person when they’d found her. She’d looked like a drowned Rattata, they’d said, coughing up half the lake just outside New Bark Town, soaked to the bone, disoriented and dazed without a clue as to where she was. She didn’t even have half a clue as to who she was.

Blood-soaked clothes, a sodden hat, combat boots, heavy coat, no memory…

A mystery. Or so they called her. She didn’t think so.

Or so she wanted to believe that.

There was no full-scale Pokémon Center in New Bark Town to recover at, none that could support everything she needed, so the closest facility with help needing fulfilling was the Pokémon Lab. It was there she’d been taken. It only seemed fitting, considering it had been Professor Elm who’d found her in the middle of his field research. The authorities came with a physician, questioned, poked, prodded, gave up, left. The report would be filed, but for the time being, nothing could be done, they’d said.

Well, it seemed like they were giving up. At least they didn’t take her with, dangling in cuffs and dipped in confusion. That left her feeling uncomfortable, bone-soaked, and alone with the older, bespectacled man. After a bit of awkward shuffling about, she was in borrowed but dried clothes, and a small office space-turned-makeshift-bedroom in the lab, left to sort through her belongings, which the police hadn’t done.

Something told her that that alone was odd. She didn’t know why. But it did.

The form fitting brown coat she had was laden with pockets. In the pockets, she found objects of interest. The obvious thing that she thought the police should have done—and was glad they didn’t after doing it herself—was several questionable items that made her question who she was.

The largest object in question was a leather-bound and worn journal—slipped in a plastic bag for protection, had she been expecting a dip in the lake?—with confusing entries and even more confusing hand drawn sketches. Did she do them? Then she found a wallet, something the police had asked about, although she feigned she didn’t have one. Her gut told her to evade the question. She wasn’t sure why, but she trusted it, even if she didn’t understand. Inside it was sparse. Some cash, a few pictures, similarly protected as the journal, these with lamination, although only one featured her, the rest were faces she didn’t recognize. Did she steal it? There was an ID in it, although the face in the picture—her face, she was sure of it—was younger, not scarred, more sure of who she was.

Another questionable object was case-bound, electronic, flat-screened. Communication device, she concluded. Cellular phone of some sort. But it was dead, damaged by the dip in the lake. Useless. Keys, perhaps to a house, a car, an office, maybe? No key chains, nothing personal. No leads.

Everything seemed normal up until the knives. One was made of bone, no…a fang. A giant fang, serrated near the leather hilt, the natural edge forged in metal. It stung the moment she tried to run her finger over, and she ended up flinging the thing away from her, sucking at her offended digit with wide eyes. Then she noticed that faint whiff of something…burning. It took her only a moment to realize it wasn’t her finger, no, but the metal on the fang-blade itself. Silver, her mind had provided, along with instinct to shy away, especially after taking a peek at the second knife. All metal, leather handled, forged from steel, with a caricature carved in the blade of a wolf-creature under the full moon, but the edge, it was the same as the fang-blade: silver.

Maybe she was more a mystery than she would have liked.

Weapons, a dead phone, pictures with faces she didn’t recognize, a strange book. And the two necklaces around her neck.

A personal charm that held no familiarity to her, other than a faint resemblance to the tattoo on her left arm. And the second, a pair of dog tags, both bearing a name she also didn’t recognize, but was willing enough to snap up for the time being until she knew who she was: Lupin Ferus, born 8 April 1985. And a captain, apparently. But captain of what, she had to wonder.

It wasn’t much, but it was something. That was certainly better than nothing.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	2. Tiptoe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of howPokémonlook in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_From your slanted view see the morning dew_  
_Sink into the soil, watch the water boil_  
_They won't see me run, who can blame them?_  
_They never look to see me fly, so I never have to lie_  
**-"Tiptoe" by Imagine Dragons**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Let's start off slow. What do I know?_

She stared at the items on the table, all on line, neat and orderly. She furrowed her brow, gaze lingering on the dog tags.

… _well, I have no idea who I am, because I'm either paranoid and thought havin' personal stuff on me was a risk, or…_

Lupin sighed.

_Or I have no clue._

She picked up the dog tags and looped the chain back over her head, nestling the metal bits alongside the pentagram charm. Then she picked up the journal next, brow furrowing even more as she guided her hands over the cover, the well-worn spine and the backing, along the pages that were uneven and lipped. They roved over cracks and creases, imperfections that made her wonder if it had been her hands that had created this book, or if it had been somebody else's hands.

Pages rustled and she breathed deep the scent of the book, the weathered pages, the graphite and charcoal and ink that stained them, the newspaper clippings and printed articles pasted and stapled and taped to the insides, adding volume and quality to it. She read through the first entries, and the confusion increased. Words popped up that didn't ring any bells.

Wendigo. Skinwalker. Shapeshifter. Banshee. Kelpie. Vampire. Werewolf.

Words that seemed so foreign, and yet she felt, once more trusting her gut, that they should mean something. But she stared blankly at them, for hours, and found…nothing. No bells rung, no fanfare sounded off, no moment of eureka to be had.

The professor left her be for those first few days, coming to a conclusion that letting her sort herself out would probably be more beneficial that fussing or worrying over her. He did, after all, have work to do. For that much, she was grateful to be left to her own devices, which honestly weren't much, since she holed herself away in the small office space he'd allowed her to take over.

But, that quiet peace soon came to an end, when a knock came at the door during one of her searching periods, breaking through the bubble she'd been so encased in for the past several hours. Hurriedly, Lupin yanked the hat sitting on the back of the chair she was sitting on over her head and threw on her coat. At the last second, she paused long enough to sweep up the knives into the depths of the coat's pockets before calling, "Come in!"

The door creaked open and the bespectacled man poked his head in, offering her a smile and a tentative nod her way. His eyes drifted to the items on the desk, before settling back on her face.

"At it again, I see," he commented and she nodded, politely so. He drummed his fingers on the door before clearing his throat. "Well, I came by to let you know that lunch is ready. Phillip's really outdone himself by making a very nice stew." He grinned a little wider. "I swear, if I didn't have him around, I'd probably be back where I was when I _didn't_ have an assistant—working for days on end without stop before collapsing. I'd wake up to the Pokemon I was observing licking my face or sleeping on my back."

He chuckled, albeit nervously, when she stared, barely a crack of a smile pulling at her own lips. He quickly petered out before clearing his throat.

"Why don't you come out and eat with us? We'll be having it outside today. It's very beautiful out. You've been cooped up for days."

"Says the workaholic researcher," Lupin replied dryly, raising a brow at the man. He grinned sheepishly.

"Guilty as charged, and a point to irony, I'll admit. I still stand by my offer. It might do you some good to get out and stretch a little. I know that this room can't be all that comfortable."

Lupin stared, brow furrowing, lips pursing, and she looked back at the table. Finally she sighed, nodded and gathered everything back up and stuffing them one-by-one into her pockets. Pulling herself to her feet, she nodded to the professor and followed him out into a short hallway that quickly extended into a large and open workspace, a vaulted ceiling, a secondary level with an observation deck, a few other doors leading to smaller work rooms. The walls were lined with quietly humming machines and devices that seemed like dormant creatures, waiting for interaction to begin anew for whatever purposes they'd been created for.

They paused at one of the doorways. The door here was automatic and after a quick code was punched into a keypad beside the door, it opened with a soft, pneumatic hiss. Professor Elm motioned for her to follow inside as he stepped through the doorway. Her immediate impression was a playroom or a nursery: the walls were painted a soft, pleasing yellow. The floor had clean carpet lining it and Lupin was almost hesitant to cross from the hard linoleum to the plush material in her scuffed boots. The carpet was littered with toys of varying sizes, shapes, materials. Several were little dolls and one of them was an object of interest between three creatures occupying the floor space in the middle of the room.

She stared, slightly boggled at the creatures. One looked vaguely familiar, although something felt off about its blue scales and red plates lining the backside. It was vaguely reptilian in nature, almost crocodilian even, with the hard long snout, crooked smile, and unblinking yellow eyes as it whipped a rather prehensile tail about behind it. The other two were a little stranger for her to adapt to.

The first was light green, a quadruped, with slightly leathery skin almost in the semblance of a plant, and a large, leaf-like protrusion was sprouting from the top of its head. It was snapping at the doll with a beak-like mouth, clacking it sharply together playfully as it nipped after the toy. She wasn't sure what to make of it, it was the strangest looking one of the three.

The last was a small, furry creature, almost roly-poly in shape, with a long thin snout, short and stubby legs and tiny, warm eyes that were nearly closed, almost like a mole's. The fur was dark in colour, almost black in some lights, with a darkish green tinge in others. Four spots of reddish-tinged fur in perfect circles lined its backside, while pale, short fur lined its belly. Fine, prickly protrusions stuck out its backside, but occasionally, she'd see the flicker of sparks spit up from them, almost as though they would combust given the right amount of friction.

As soon as she and the professor stepped into the room, the play between the three almost ceased completely. Bright eyes turned on him in an instant, before the toy was dropped and forgotten as they toddled closer toward the man bearing the crisp white lab coat with squeals and squeaks of joy.

"Professor!"

"It's the Professor!"

Lupin twitched at the voices, surprised.

_Did they just…?_

The voices, three and distinct, rose to a clamor, overlapping one another to be heard as they crowded the professor. He knelt and they scrambled at the further purchase now available, trying to clamber into his lap. It was a rather quirky sight and it prompted a faint smile from Lupin, despite her awkwardness in being a quiet bystander.

"These are the pokémon that are a part of my research. I focus mainly on the evolutionary stages between the juvenile, adolescent, and mature stages of pokémon evolutions. Why do some take so long to evolve? Why do some take a shorter amount of time? It's all so very interesting. In comparison, say, a Charmander to a Cyndaquil, a Charmander takes longer to grow into its adolescence of a Charmeleon than a Cyndaquil does to Quilava. But, they both evolve around the same rate and level of experience to reach their final stages of maturity as Charizard and Typhlosion, respectively."

Here he motioned to the little roly-poly, mole-creature with dark fur and odd markings. The little creature with its sparking backside glanced at her at last, as though suddenly aware of the audience and snuffled in her direction before sneezing. The other two paused in their pawing at the professor to look at her as well. The green, leafy creature shuddered. The blue crocodilian regarded her with half-lidded, lazy eyes and looked rather unimpressed.

"She smells funny."

The previous shock from moments before plummeted at the comment and she gave the now-named Cyndaquil a dull glare.

"Your backside is a fireworks factory hazard. I wouldn't be talking," she muttered back with as dry a tone as she could muster.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Professor Elm interrupted, looking back at her from over his shoulder. She frowned, glancing at the Cyndaquil, hesitating. She motioned vaguely to them.

"You didn't…hear…?"

"Hear what? I thought I heard you say something, but I couldn't hear over these little guys' squeals. They've got all sorts of energy building up, I swear, they never seem to stop!"

 _And I think I've entered the early stages of craziness while suffering amnesia. Better stay hushed for now, or I might actually end up in a looney bin this time around,_ she instantly concluded with a faint smile.

"Nothing. I didn't say anything. Uh. You said something about lunch?"

"Right. Yes, of course. I just wanted to come grab these guys, it's time for their midday meal, as well as their exercise time. We like to let them come out and enjoy some playtime out back. Chikorita here for example needs some ample sun time, being a grass-type, as does Totodile, being cold-blooded."

He straightened as he motioned to the green, leafy creature and then the blue scaled crocodilian. All three began to trail after him toward the doorway and she followed, mindful to not step on any of them. As she followed after them all, she only half-listened to the professor as he continued to prattle on about the other pokémon he's studied and the interest in how some evolve and others simply don't. Her focus was tuned more to the wary looks cast her way by the three pokémon she was tailing, as well as the hushed whispers between them.

Whispers, she observed, that were apparently about her and how she didn't quite smell human.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She stared at the woman in the reflection in the mirror, her brow furrowing. The reflection twin did the same, a look of intense concentration crossing her features. Lupin's gaze roamed over the eyes first, as they always did: the left was a clear and hot gold, the right was a stormy blue-gray. Her hair was long, dark brown, wavy. The tips, however, were a deep and dark red, almost like blood, which was already chilling enough, but it seemed like a natural colour, no dye job required or needed. She peeled back her lips, just enough to show the pointed tips of her canines: too long and sharp to be considered normal for a human. Her nails were the same, growing in thick, pointed tips if she didn't clip them after a few days. Across the bridge of her nose, and trailing an almost-L shape across her right cheek, was a thin scar, as though made by a blade.

In fact, a good portion of her body was covered in scars, most made, she assumed, by some giant beast that had sunk its fangs and talons into her body for hunting practice. Her back, belly, both shoulders, left forearm, left thigh and right ankle—they all looked like they'd been broken, ravaged or crushed by a large animal. The only other scars that seemed to be made of something else were burns or cuts. Worry gnawed at her gut, making her continue to wonder just what the hell kind of life she'd led, to earn such grievous looking scars across her body. And how could she have _survived_? She wasn't exactly thick or bulky enough to spare room for such brutal attacks.

Her focus, however, finally diverted away from the scars, and settled on the two protrusions sticking out of her head, and her backside. Furry ears, the same mixture of dark brown and deep red, twitched atop her head. The base of where they started on the side of her skull lined up where a regular human ear would start, curved upwards until it formed the outline and base of the ear. They were rather canine in nature, thick and pointed, not small and near-triangular shaped like a cat's would be.

And then there was the tail. Where the tailbone in a human should have ended, hers continued into a soft, but thick and bushy tail. Same as her hair, it was dark brown, tipped in a deep reddish colour. It swayed and twitched and cricked and puffed and she could move it at will, same as the ears. But, half the time, when she wasn't thinking on either of them, they would move accordingly to her mood, making them appear almost vocal in some instances.

…if she allowed anyone else to see, that is. Gut instinct told her to keep things hidden for the time being. Why else had she been wearing the hat and the long coat, if not to hide her unusual features? It was no wonder that the pokémon in Professor Elm's charge were all skittish and wary around her. Well, except for the one or two oddities that didn't seem to give a damn, but still. The majority of them took care to avoid her.

It didn't help that she could smell in the inhumanness of herself as well.

In fact, she could smell quite a lot, and not just herself. The scent of the forest surrounding New Bark Town was brought in from all directions on the breeze. Something new was always on it, and when it came back again, she could recognize it. Flowers, dirt, trees, animals, water; everything. She could tell if there was a river two hundred feet or two miles away from just one whiff on the wind. She could tell if a flock of birds was nearby and she was downwind or if there was a storm coming in from the distance. She could smell the myriad of people living in town, when the wind shifted just right, and pick out the young, elderly, healthy, and sick with a single whiff. It felt new and exciting, yet familiar and old all at once. Natural, even.

 _So it's safe to assume I was like this beforehand,_ she reasoned, pushing back on the sink away from her reflection. Her ears gave a twitch and the mirrored doppelganger did the same in reverse. She turned toward the walk-in shower and twisted the knob, allowing the water to start up and get hot. _But this doesn't account for what I am. Just that I'm not…human. Am I one of the monsters in that journal I have?_

She'd read every description inside that thing, from front to back, cover to cover. She knew nearly every line, drawing, sketch, and scribble by heart. The closest assumption she could assume, if she had been the one to write it, was she was one of those…werewolf creatures.

_Super strength, speed, stamina, endurance, senses, healing…just about everything superior to a human._

The thought made her frown as she stuck her hand into the steady stream of hot water. Tossing the towel around her onto the sink counter, she stepped under it, her muscles already relaxing into mindless putty.

The thought of not being human didn't chill her to the bones, not really. It just confirmed what she already knew. It felt like a fact, and at this point, it certainly qualified as one. The only thing that chilled her at this point, was she couldn't remember everything else _. I have puzzle pieces with no pictures on them. I have them, they're there…they're just blank. Like my brain._

She sighed. _One step at a time._

Maybe she needed more than hours on end staring at objects from her pockets. She'd been entertaining the idea of asking the professor if she could find some work to do around the lab, perhaps acquaint herself more with the pokémon in it. Get them used to her, so that they didn't quiver and whisper and scowl as she passed them by. It was beginning to grate her nerves more than hurt her feelings at this point. And maybe doing something familiar would jog some of her memories.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The next few days were rather…colourful. And eventful. Her memory didn't magically come back. The fears of the pokémon the professor cared for didn't dissipate. But, she did conclude, that there was some progress. There was less tension in the air as the days passed, but it was slow. The pokémon were getting used to seeing her, at the very least. She helped with the meal preparations, and in retrieving them for exercise outside in the afternoon, and then rounding them up in the evening twilight for dinner, the day's last few tests, and then bed.

By week's end, the routine seemed to help in easing the jitteriness and worry, giving her something useful to do. The only break in pattern was when the police returned. They came back to follow up on her, and had brought the physician they had with them the night she'd been found back as well. She was checked out again, asked what she assumed were routine medical questions, although she refused to take her coat or hat off in their presence.

"It…I don't feel comfortable taking it off, it feels…normal," had been her hesitant response when asked why. There were looks exchanged—sympathy, she noted, and it made her stomach churn at the sight—but she wasn't pressed to remove either. But the card was played right; it made them feel like she was recovering, even though that wasn't the case. Far from it.

"Do you remember your name?"

"I found some dog tags around my neck. After you guys left, I mean."

"Can I see them?"

Reluctantly, Lupin removed them, offering them to the awaiting hand of the physician while the police hovered nearby, scribbling in their notepads. Dogs sat at the heels of the officers, coloured a dark, rusty orange with pale, creamy bellies and dark jagged stripes, eyeing her with bright blue eyes. They occasionally wagged their bushy tails when she met their gazes, but otherwise, acted like silent sentinels. The professor and his assistant occasionally popped in to quietly check their progress, but they didn't interfere with what was going on.

The physician looked over the imprinted information, coffee-brown eyes moving back and forth before she smiled at Lupin, and handed them to the officer beside her. He took it, and began recording the information on his pad.

"It seems you were in the military, although I don't recognize the format for these ID tags. Perhaps you came from…Kalos? Or maybe Sinnoh. There's also the Hoenn and Unova regions. I doubt Kanto, we're next door neighbors after all and New Bark Town gets a lot of traffic for trainers moving to and from, although we won't rule any one place out. We can start using the information on your tags, and perhaps get some answers from that. It's possibly you have someone who cares for you put in a missing person's report, if you've been gone for a long time without communicating with them. Perhaps even the military is looking for you."

That didn't sound good. Was she a deserter? She hoped not. Then she remembered the pictures in her wallet, of all those smiling faces, and how none of them seemed familiar to her. Could one of them be missing her? Maybe if she found one of them, they could help her recover what she's lost. Maybe she could remember if she saw them in person, heard their voice…

The physician took advantage of her quiet pause to pull out a white and red ball from the depths of her bag. Lupin eyed it warily before it split open, seemingly of its own accord. A red light burst forth, taking shape beside the physician until a solid form stood beside the seated woman. Lupin's first impression was tall, graceful, and willowy.

Then details began to sink in. The pokémon before her was definitely slim in form, draped in a white, gown-like lower body, the upper body just as willowy and thin and cut out with a minty-green pattern. A single, cherry-red eye stared down at her, the other hidden by long, curling green hair over its face. The pokémon regarded with a cool and quiet gaze, arms hanging gracefully at its side before moving to clasp in front of it as it turned to glance at the physician, awaiting orders.

"This is my Gardevoir, Laila. She usually helps me with some patients who suffer from head trauma. It sometimes helps with those who can't be given usual medical procedures, for whatever reason. In your case, I think this would count." She paused to push back the glasses on the bridge of her nose back up. "I'd take you to the hospital and go through the usual round of testing, but without a medical history, I don't want to risk you having an allergic reaction to something we'd need to inject you with to get our results. For now, this will have to suffice."

The Gardevoir bowed her head in response to the introduction. Lupin returned the gesture.

"So, what exactly does she do?"

"She examines your head for any outside trauma we may not be able to detect and goes from there. I think after a week, however, you'd show signs of any problems and you seem rather healthy, just like you did the night you were found. A little shaken up, but nothing physically wrong with you, it seemed. No nausea, dizziness, blackouts, headaches of any sort, right?"

"Yeah. That's right." Lupin nodded again. She glanced at the officers. They were no longer writing in their notebooks, and the one who still had her dog tags leaned forward long enough to hand them back. Lupin slipped the chain over her head again.

"All right, then. After that, we can look deeper; maybe see what's causing you to not remember. It's not a surefire way to get anything out of that head of yours, but it might help loosen things up. Although, we'll first need your written consent and I have the paperwork with me. I don't want to do anything you don't feel comfortable with. This is, after all, a psychic pokémon we're dealing with. They have to get inside your head to help you, and some people aren't comfortable with somebody in their head like that."

Lupin eyed the Gardevoir warily now, brows creasing slightly in worry. She weighed her options and found she didn't have very many. Slowly, she inclined her head into another nod.

"I won't get answers by sitting on my hands," she admitted. The physician smiled again, nodded in return, and dipped back into the bag she'd brought with her. She produced a clipboard with rustling pages attached to it, but she paused to look at the officers behind her.

"Could you give us some space, please? I'd rather her feel somewhat comfortable without you two looming behind me."

"Of course, Ms. Joan. Just give us a holler if you need us back."

With a whistle to their pokémon, the two turned heel and out of the makeshift office-space-turned-bedroom. Then Lupin was left alone with the physician and her Gardevoir. Lupin took the paperwork from the woman, reading through the policies, conditions, and explanations regarding the procedure beforehand. She paused midway, reading over a passage several times.

"Different types of amnesia…" She lifted her gaze back up from the printed words, fingers rubbing at the pages, twitching to do more than shuffle them about but she wasn't sure what. The pen in her other hand tapped against her leg. "What kinds are there?"

"Several, actually. And they can stem from psychological to physical. Some forms of amnesia can serve as a defense mechanism to deal with a trauma someone has sustained, whether it was the one or the other, or even both. Some have short-term, meaning it's only temporary, and others are long-term, which…could be permanent. But those are just a few. The human brain is a very complex organ and unique to every individual. Your case could very well clear itself up over time. You should always hope for the best."

The woman sounded sympathetic and motherly in a way. It hit her hard, out of nowhere, the wandering thought of what her mother must look like. _Does she miss me? Does she know I'm missing? Is she…is she still alive?_

She had to repress the sudden, vile feeling of nausea that rippled through her core. The Gardevoir beside the physician shifted, training her eye on her and she gave a soft noise of disapproval, moving closer. She raised a hand and placed it on her brow, making a soft humming noise in the back of her throat.

"Mmm. That won't do. Trying to force it won't make it come any quicker," she said quietly, softly with all the concern and warmth she could muster. Which was to say, quite surprisingly, a lot. Lupin felt a warmth spread through her, a relaxation easing the tension in her limbs, and she remembered what Ms. Joan had called Gardevoir: a psychic-type pokémon.

"Laila, not yet, please. She needs to finish signing if she wants to do this."

The Gardevoir nodded and removed her hand. Lupin held that red stare for a few moments longer before dropping her gaze back down to the paperwork. She finished skimming, scribbling her name in looping, jerky letters and passed the forms and clipboard back to the other woman. Then, only then, did she finally nod to the Gardevoir, who moved forward once more. Soft, warm hands brushed her brow again, moving back red-tipped hair from her gaze and settling against her flesh.

Hope was all she had at this point.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	3. Lost Touch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Two: Lost Touch**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_You don't say much_  
_You don't say any more than you have to_  
_Have you lost touch_  
_With the ones you adore and sought after, yeah_  
_And you don't know why_  
**-“ _Some Kind of Home_ ” by Thriving Ivory**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It was nearly dusk by the time everything was completed. Disappointment lingered like a bad taste in her mouth. It was enough to make her need to get out of the pokémon lab, the first time since she’d first set eyes on the place. It was heavy and oppressing, a prison she needed to escape, even if only for a short while. She didn’t have anywhere else to go, even in spite of the offer from Ms. Joan to place her in a more comfortable, semi-permanent halfway house until she could either be identified or helped back onto her feet.

The offer had been tempting, but at the same time…

Well…suffice to say, it was declined, regardless of the good intentions. After the police had left with polite nods, terse instructions and a genuine goodwill with the physician, the air seemed to grow tight and heavy as the minutes ticked by. She managed to wheedle an excuse to finally wander New Bark Town, although it wasn’t to completely and pointlessly shuffle about streets. She was, after all, giving her services to the professor in exchange for room and board.

The closest he had to a task in town for her was shopping to restock the lab’s supplies. That seemed easy enough.

Lupin spent most of her time outside getting the lay of the land. The town, in spite of its small size, was a central hub for traveling trainers making their way to and from Kanto. There was a small pokémon clinic with the simplest of necessities. There was a pokémon department store next door with all the needed accessories and supplies a trainer would need or want in order to continue to the next town over. Several other businesses catered to other pokémon services, such as grooming or treats, although Lupin was looking for more human-based services at this point.

Or, well…human-ish services, in her case.

She found the food mart after passing the clinic a second time, satisfied that she could pinpoint where to go if she needed something other than food.

_But why would I need to know where everything is? I don’t plan on going anywhere else._

The thought suddenly struck her odd almost as soon as it came to her. She paused mid-step, staring blankly at the aisle wall, hand dropping to her side.

_Why would I stay here?_

The juxtaposition of the situation felt like she had abruptly hit a brick wall at full speed running. Why would she stay? Why should she go? If someone is looking for her, wouldn’t it benefit staying? But what if they weren’t? What if someone knew her but didn’t know she was missing? Finding them while figuring out who she was should be priority, shouldn’t it?

Now she was wishing she had shown the pictures in her wallet to the police. Perhaps they could have done a multiple search: for her identity, and perhaps the identity of the others. More questions, even fewer answers. She sighed heavily, plucking the box of noodles off the shelf before her and tossed it into the basket. She lingered in the store, slowly going through the list before making it to the checkout counter. She glanced at the list the professor had given her, tucked it in her pocket and plucked an additional task list that Phillip had passed along to her from her pocket.

She read through the list, which was rather short, sweet, and to the point. Turning on her heel, she double-backed to the pokémon supply mart. _Should’ve done this before hitting the food mart_ , she thought, although as she slipped in through the door when she arrived, realized it wasn’t as bad as it had been earlier. Although, to be fair, it’d look even less crowded if pokémon didn’t litter the aisles alongside their trainers.

She gave pause a three-headed, dusty-brown bird poking its head over one of the aisles. It watched her and two other people in different places with beady eyes. Lupin mock sneered at the head facing her and it puffed its feathers up, clacking its beak indignantly with a squawk. She snickered and headed for the counter, where one of the workers ushered her forward when his customer finished up.

She handed the list over, mentioning she was coming from Professor Elm’s lab. Immediately, recognition lit up his face and he waved a hand to her.

“Of course, it’s that time again. Every two weeks, Professor Elm has us order items in bulk for his research pokémon. Are you a new intern?”

“Intern? Oh. Oh, um…I guess you could call me that. I kinda just…showed up one day.”

It was somewhat true, to a point. He leaned forward on the counter, smiling at her.

“You passing through town and looking for work? Is that all it is?”

“Not really. I just…needed a place to stay, so I’m doing some chores around the lab and getting some knowledge about the…here. Johto. I’m working it out with the professor right now. Um…about that order. Do I need to pay now or…?”

He sighed, pushing away from the counter, running his hand through his thick hair. “Payments are made upon delivery, which will be in a few days.” He paused, lips quirking again. “I’m guessing if I was straightforward and honest about asking you out, you’d say no, wouldn’t you?”

Lupin had to focus on keeping her ears from rustling beneath her hat. They were tempted to pin against her head, possibly skew her hat’s position over her head. She cleared her throat and shook her head instead. “Sorry, I’m not really—no. No, I’m not. Interested, that is.”

Another smile, this one accompanied by a good-natured shrug and a wink. “Can’t say I didn’t try. Say hi to Professor Elm and Phillip for me. We’ll have your goods delivered in a few days for those hungry pokémon.”

She took her leave after that, toting with her all the groceries she’d bought. They seemed to weigh nothing at all, although her thoughts were another story altogether. The trip into town had done some good in distracting her, but now she had no town to occupy her attention. Her idle mind kept retreating back to the empty results that had taken place after the physician and her Gardevoir had tried pushing past the mental block in her head. No matter the pushing, prodding, or coaxing inducted by the Gardevoir yielded any positive results. It was a solid blackness, Laila had finally determined, one that she couldn’t intrude on or it might risk harming Lupin further.

“It’s up to you to either overcome it or…adapt around it. It will depend on how deep the trauma you suffered has gone. There isn’t much else I can do except offer my condolences and to wish you good luck in that endeavor.” Laila had remarked with a bowed head and closed eye. She sounded so sincere and genuine, but it didn’t make Lupin feel any better.

It had left the physician disappointed and remorseful with the lack of results. It left Lupin feeling hollow, lost and full of resentment toward whatever forces in the world had decided to do this to her.

A sudden squeal of pain and something lumpy writhing under her boot alerted her back to her surroundings. The sharp pain in her ankle triggered a knee jerk reaction to kick out at whatever had sunk into her flesh. The pain was sharp but brief and she stumbled backwards with a yelp that quickly grew into a snarl. She felt her tail puffing up beneath her coat, and her ears flared against her skull, shifting her hat crookedly. She searched the ground with a venomous glare, ready to sic her contempt on whatever had decided to attack her.

An insult and a curse had lined itself up against the backs of her teeth, loud and abrasive and aimed to hurt as much as her foot was ready to crush down on the offender. But, everything was swallowed back down and lodged itself in her throat, choking her for a split second.

“What—what?! _You_ —! You’re supposed to be up at the lab!”

Curled up on the side of the road and eyeing her with cold, yellow eyes was the professor’s Totodile. His back was slightly arched, making the crimson back plates flare and seem like they were spiking higher than normal, the tips of his front paws balancing his upper body to a near-upright position. His nostrils flared and the blue of his scales glinted in the dying sunlight, giving it a rather startling and dramatic effect. They weren’t incredibly shiny, but neither were they a dull matte colour.

“And _you_ were supposed to be outside with us this afternoon. It’s rude to establish a routine and then up and leave like that. Oh, what do you have? Can I see, let me see. I’ve been waiting out here for over an hour, I’m starved! I missed dinner.”

Then with a single push, the Totodile was up on his thick hind legs, shuffling forward with surprising agility toward the bags dangling in Lupin’s hands. He sniffled loudly and nearly snapped one apart with his crooked, sharp teeth if she hadn’t lifted them out of his reach at the last second. His forearms wriggled in front of him, pawing at the empty air and up towards the bags.

“What in the hell were you waiting for me for? What if a car ran you over, or somebody decided to-to—“

“To what? Battle me? I can take anyone on and anything they throw at me,” he snorted indignantly and clacking his jaws together. She glowered, not entirely believing she was having this conversation. _I’m insane. I hit my head and I’ve gone insane. I inhaled too much water, killed my brain, now I’m hearing voices that aren’t possibly real coming out of the mouths of these—these things!_

He was clawing at her pant leg now, trying to clamber up her to reach the bags and on top of that, was making squeaking whines. “C’mon, gimme! I’m hungry!”

She sighed, half in aggravation, half in defeat. “We’ll be back at the lab in ten minutes if we start walking now. Come on.”

“I’m too hungry to move. I might starve before then. Carry me!” He gave her that crooked crocodile grin, eyelids lowering to give her a leering expression, rolling onto his side.

She scowled again. “You lazy reptile. I don’t have time for this. My hands are full.”

“Please?”

“You should’ve thought about that before you wandered out here.” She paused, raising a brow at the blue-scaled reptile. “And I thought you could handle anything.”

“Hunger is my one weakness. The cons of being cold blooded. Slow metabolism.” He snorted sharply, rolling back onto all fours. “Please carry me? It’s getting cold. I don’t move as well in the cold.”

She watched him with narrowed eyes, shifting her weight from one leg to the other. “Manners. That’s a start.” She sighed and kneeled, lowering her shoulder closer toward him. “Climb on. I really don’t want to put all this down. And no, you can’t have anything until we get to the lab. I’ll make you something before bed.”

“Fair enough, I suppose. Maybe I’ll put in a good word to the professor for you when we get back to the lab.” He remarked with another pointed sniff as he shuffled forward and hauled himself onto her shoulders. She winced at his sharp claws, but straightened up without a word of complaint and lurched forward back down the way she had been going.

“He doesn’t seem to understand you.”

“Not in words, no.” He replied against her cheek. She tilted her head just enough to find one large yellow eye staring back at her. “But _you_ do. Not many people can understand pokémon like you do. Some can, or so I’ve heard, but you’re the first I’ve come across who can. It’s uncommon.”

The Totodile paused long enough to let out a sharp breath through his nostrils. “But you’re not like most people. You don’t smell human.”

She didn’t say anything and put her gaze back on the road. A soft rattling sound sounded off on her shoulder. _Is he…laughing?_

“I’m not going to tell. Although the other two are scared of you.” She felt a hard mouth poke at her neck. “You don’t smell like any pokémon I’ve encountered before. What are you exactly? And why’re you posing as a human?”

“I’m…not a pokémon,” she replied vaguely. “But I’m not…human either. It’s…complicated.”

“Did you forget what you were?” He sounded rather curious and a bit…sympathetic. It surprised her and some of her mild resentment to his earlier behavior melted away.

“Kind of.”

“Well, you _did_ inhale a lot water from the lake. I was the one who pulled you out. I didn’t even need any help.”

She could practically feel him swelling with pride on her shoulder. He’d puffed himself up by balancing against her shoulder on his front legs. His back legs clung to the back of her shirt while his tail—which was surprisingly prehensile and she didn’t think it possible in a reptile—curled across her shoulders for counterbalance. He must’ve looked all sorts of proud, she mused, and it did bring a faint grin to her lips. Arrogant and cheeky little guy. He was young, though. Childish, in some ways. But the professor did say that a Totodile was the juvenile stage for a Feraligatr, whatever that was.

“I didn’t smell any blood. You didn’t hit your head, I don’t think. So why did you forget? There was a human doctor there earlier today, right? She was helping you.”

“It’s…she said it’s complicated. I could have amnesia from…any number of things. Psychological shock or physical trauma. I could remember everything soon or…remember nothing, ever again. I’d never know who I am again. Not…not unless I meet someone who knew me and can help.”

“So why don’t you?”

“It’s complicated,” she replied.

“What’s so _complicated_ about finding someone you know? Can’t you smell your nest-mates? Just go sniff them out and have them help you.”

“It doesn’t work like that—this world is…it’s pretty big. And I…wouldn’t know where to start. Or who to look for. I just…have faces in pictures. No names. No addresses.”

“Sounds like a personal problem.”

She stopped in her tracks and snarled. She wished she could drop the burdens in her hands to pluck the little pokémon off her shoulder and make him walk the rest of the way. “Okay, look you scaly little brat. Here’s the thing: I’m not staying at the lab, I do intend to go on my merry way and you’ll never have to see me again. So until then, I want you to zip it and leave me be to figure things out. Starting now.”

Her outburst, while she would admit she could have handled it better, seemed to have the desired effect. For a few minutes, up until the pokémon lab was in sight, the Totodile was silent, save for his raspy breathing. When they reached the door and she opened them to enter, only then did he speak. “I was only asking because I’m intrigued by you not being pokémon or human. I wasn’t impressed. Don’t mix the two up.”

Tension coiled in his little body a split second before he leapt from her shoulder and landed inside the doorway with all the grace of a cat. Once more, she was dumbstruck, the immediate impression of ‘should be impossible’ stamping itself at the forefront of her thoughts. The water pokémon glanced back at her with those bright yellow eyes and snorted.

“If you’re looking to leave soon, let me know. I might just go with you, since the other two are too scared to come near you except around mealtime. But I’m only offering because I know the professor would worry, since you don’t seem to have any pokémon of your own. Could be dangerous out there without any. Human or not.”

His rattling laughter echoed into the confines of the lab as he waddled inside, leaving Lupin with the groceries still in hand.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“He did _what_?”

Phillip Sykes stared at her, rather incredulous as he peeled away some of the groceries from her hands to place on the counter. His mouth was gaping as he whipped his head to look over his shoulder, as though expecting to see the offender of his searching gaze.

“Yeah, I guess Totodile decided to try and follow me, maybe? I found him less than a mile down the road, though. He seemed rather…miffed.”

He raised a dark eyebrow at her, lips pursing as he turned back toward the groceries.

“That’s unusual. None of the pokémon have ever done that before. In fact, they’ve all been acting a little strange lately, ever since you arrived.”

“I’m an anomaly in their routine. I’m also a new face. They’re probably still getting used to me,” she responded automatically, thinking back on Totodile’s words. _They’re afraid of me, that’s why. I don’t smell right to them._

“Maybe. It takes some pokémon longer than others to adjust to new faces. Although Totodile seems to be taking a liking to you.” He smiled, as though that was the greatest thing in the world to notice. Lupin avoided his gaze, busying herself with stocking the fridge with the colder items.

“I don’t think he’s taking much of a shine to me. He bit my ankle the minute he saw me before squealing at me like he was cursin’ me out.”

The smile dropped and a dumbstruck expression painted his face now.

“…huh.”

“Yeah. Might wanna rethink your statement,” she remarked back, stuffing in a gallon of milk into the fridge before tossing the white plastic bag onto the counter. She turned back to the counter to pull out the various meat packages to stuff into the freezer. She omitted the part where she did step on him, but even if she hadn’t, she doubted the blue-scaled reptile would have been any less rude.

“Well, regardless, I’ll have to let the professor know. He was very worried when he couldn’t find Totodile after they were let out this afternoon. I’m glad he’s all right, though.”

She hummed back, a noncommittal response. It wasn’t that she didn’t agree. She was still stinging from his sharp little words, and it made her skin crawl with how uncomfortable she felt in it. She wasn’t a whole person, not with how empty her head was.

 _Stupid reptile. Just ignore him, he’s a rude little fucker_ , she finally settled for with a scowl as she finished with one of the last bags. Listening to whatever he had to say wasn’t going to fix her situation. That much was for sure.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	4. Direction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Three:  
Direction**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Where is the end, is the edge of understanding?_  
_I might think it's overrated or can't take the mind expanding_  
 _Give me a pint, a little push in one direction_  
 _I might need a little help with my own interconnection_  
**-“ _What’s in the Middle_ ” by The Bird and the Bee**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“How can you stand wearing that coat? It’s so hot out!”

Lupin peeped her eyes open at the voice, seeing Phillip approaching to her left. She cleared her throat, sitting up a little more in her seat, adjusting the coat to cover her tail a little more. She’d had too many close calls and had resorted to wearing it all the time now. It didn’t help that the damned thing was kind of big, either.

“I don’t really feel the heat getting to me. Feels nice out,” she replied back. She shifted her gaze out to the open field around them. Behind the lab, there were fences and corrals to keep the pokémon from wandering or running off by accident, but plenty of wide open spaces, courses, and even trees to romp about in. Several trainers who had gotten starters from Professor Elm tended to send their pokémon to the lab when they weren’t boxed, mostly for his study. It helped the pokémon, their trainers, and the professor and his assistant in their research. Or that’s what Lupin’s been told. It seemed like a rather beneficial circle.

She took a mental account of all the pokémon that had been sent outside for the day—including the professor’s study pokémon—and noted they were all there, just like they were there fifteen minutes ago, and fifteen minutes before that.

The watch had been tightened since Totodile’s impromptu escape from a few days ago, and today Lupin was keeping an eye on things. She kept an especially watchful eye on the blue-scaled pokémon. Occasionally, she’d catch him watching her just as sharply. She sometimes wanted to smack that little crooked grin off his smug snout—if she could, that is.

Her hands twitched and fiddled with a book in her lap, the pages rustling. For once, she had decided not to drag her journal—who else could it be but hers?—out for the day, and instead forced herself to choose something else. It was one of many books that was lying around the lab, and she hadn’t really read the cover when she grabbed it. Nor had she really been reading, but she figured getting her mind off things should be priority. At least, that’s what she was _trying_ to do, anyway.

“So, everything going good out here, nothing unusual, I hope?”

“No, not really. Some wild bird pokémon flitting around, but they aren’t attacking or anything. Which is good, I guess?”

“As long as they’re not Spearow. Pidgey we don’t have to worry too much about. They occasionally come by and play with the others, but Spearow are a little more aggressive. I’d be more worried from an attack by them.”

Lupin thought for a moment, mind working on registering the names and faces together: Spearow, a mean-looking little bird with rusty red, brown and black feathers and Pidgey, a little cream-and-brown feathered bird with a gentler nature. She had noticed flocks of the former, although none ever came too close to the lab. They tended to stay closer toward the forest not far from New Bark Town, although some individuals roamed about here and there. Pidgey, on the other hand, were opportunistic little buggers, and were _everywhere_.

Her fingers continued to rub along a page she had pinched between them. It gathered the taller man’s attention and he glanced down, grinning. “Reading something new, I see. What is it? ‘ _Battle Tactics for the Beginning Trainer_ ’…” He paused, rubbing his chin. “That reminds me…the police called the other day.”

Lupin stiffened, tilting her head to look up at him. She waited for him to continue. Her patience paid off.

“The information they said they’d gotten from your dog tags…they don’t match the format of any known military unit in any region. Looks like you’re just wearing personalized tags. And…unfortunately, it looks like no one’s put in any missing persons report out for you. I’m sorry, I meant to tell you the other day, but the professor and I got engrossed in our work.”

She felt her stomach slithering lower into her abdomen in disappointment. That sour taste in the back of her mouth returned, the same from the day she had had no luck with Ms. Joan and her Gardevoir. Phillip sighed, reaching up to run a hand through his dark hair, a frown pulling his lips down as he regarded her apologetically. Lupin didn’t meet his gaze and instead, dropped it to the words scattered across the book she had been trying in vain to read.

“It doesn’t look like you’re even a registered trainer. No name, no facial recognition, nothing’s popping up. So you don’t have a license to be a trainer, and you’re most likely not an intern or assistant in a lab, either. It…I’m sorry to say, it looks like you’re back at square one.”

Well, that made her feel even more miserable and she started to shut the book, ready to ask if he could stay and watch the pokémon for the rest of the afternoon. She wanted to be alone, or to wander somewhere, to do anything, to busy herself with anything other than thinking on this news.

“I know I keep saying it, but I _am_ sorry, for bringing you such bad news, but…I do have some good news.”

That gave her pause and she dared to lift her gaze back up again to meet his. There was a small smile decorating his lips, one that promised a tiny ray of hope.

“Despite all that’s come to light…the professor has put in to register you as a junior assistant associated with the lab. It just entails to helping out around the lab, working with the pokémon, and occasionally doing errands or using the pokémon for research. It’s temporary, of course, until you find out who you are, I mean.”

Well, that _was_ a spot of good news, even if she didn’t quite get it. _You have to have a license to handle pokémon…?_

“Of course, you can only handle the pokémon if it’s for the lab. If you want a trainer’s license, you’d need to go to Violet City, where the schoolhouse is. Every course is about three weeks long, and they’re always going on. Most people go through when they’re children, that way they’re registered beforehand and don’t have to be delayed in getting their pokémon for their journeys, whatever they may be,” Phillip continued, as though taking cue from her quietness. He hesitated, however, and added, “But…you know this already, don’t you?”

Lupin shook her head, feeling a little miffed that she didn’t. Should she have known all this? She wasn’t sure, she couldn’t recall. It didn’t sound familiar at all.

“Oh, wow. You really _are_ empty of everything. I mean…I didn’t mean it like _that_ , just…general knowledge of things, is all I meant.” He rubbed at the back of his head, sighing. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude and make it sound like you’re stupid. I can tell you’re intelligent. You get the gist of things rather quickly, but you just seem…so lost on a lot. Like pokémon, in general.”

“Maybe a visit to that schoolhouse would be favorable for me in the future, then.” She said with a sigh, glancing up at the romping pokémon, taking a mental account of everyone, then nodded, satisfied that they were all there.

“Maybe. You wouldn’t be able to battle any gym leaders in the future if you did choose to leave.”

“Gym leaders?”

For some reason, her mind conjured up the image of a body builder hefting weights at the words ‘gym leader’.

“Elite trainers who own battle arenas that tailor to a specific pokémon type, such as fire or water or grass. There are eighteen pokémon types, and not all of them are singularly devoted to just one element. Some are duel-types, such as dark and fire, ice and psychic, or grass and poison. So on and so forth. Just recently, the fairy type was discovered, helping even out the list from seventeen to eighteen. A few pokémon have been identified under this category, and I’m sure there are plenty more out there. Whitney, the gym leader over in Goldenrod City, was rather ecstatic, although she’s kept her original title as a gym leader of normal types. Shame, really, she could have become the first fairy-type gym leader known worldwide.”

Phillip chuckled, although Lupin’s rather neutral expression remained largely the same. She looked back down to the book in her lap, before noticing a pair of eyes watching her from the ground beside her feet. She jumped in surprise, the pages in her book fluttering as she was met with the crooked little grin of Totodile. He pushed himself to his hind legs, cocking his head at her, yellow eyes gleaming in the sunlight.

“You—go away. Go play. Shoo.” She scowled when he didn’t move. Phillip laughed beside her.

“Hey, there, Totodile. Sneaky thing, aren’t you? Don’t get used to it. One day you’ll evolve into a Feraligatr. Won’t be so easy to sneak around being a giant blue lizard. Well, except for maybe in lakes and rivers, that is. As long as they’re not too murky or muddy. Blue doesn’t work too well against brown.”

“Crocodilian,” Totodile corrected, although Phillip didn’t seem to hear or understand. Lupin resisted the urge to pin her ears against her head. It would only skew her hat and she was surprised she hadn’t done so sooner with Phillip. Totodile shuffled closer, sticking his snout up against her hand, the book, snuffling pointedly. “What’re you reading? Show me.”

“You rude thing, back off.” She scowled again, pulling her book out of his reach. He gave a reptilian glower aimed at her and snapped his jaws in displeasure. She narrowed her mismatched eyes at him, not daring to flinch under that gaze.

“Easy, there, Totodile, you’ve got sharp teeth. You don’t want to bite her by accident. C’mere, you rascal,” Phillip said, circling around the chair Lupin was seated at to pick up the pokémon. Totodile let out a long-suffering sigh as Phillip lifted him up. “You don’t mind him sitting with you, do you? He seems to be the only one not overly skittish when it comes to you lately.”

Lupin was tempted to say no, but swallowed it back down in a hurry and instead shook her head. He’d never leave her alone if she simply tried avoiding him. She lifted her book out of the way and the reptile was lowered onto her lap. He immediately curled up, settling comfortably and she lowered back down the book and flipped the cover for him to see.

“’ _Battle Tactics for the Beginning Trainer_ ’. Do you plan on battling other trainers someday?” He tilted his head to glance at her, a sly look in those yellow eyes. She caught a glimpse of red in there too, a bright crimson colour. His sclera was what was yellow, then. Not his iris. She had mistakenly thought it all yellow with a black iris. It was a startling contrast.

She kept quiet at his inquiry, however, flipping the cover back down and to the page she had been previously trying to finish. He seemed to get the message, almost as soon as the silence continued to drag on without answer. He snorted, as though annoyed, but said nothing further. Phillip didn’t stay much longer and soon left with a quiet goodbye, and a reminder that it was almost time to start corralling the other pokémon back inside. She gave a noncommittal response in return, knowing she had roughly over an hour left of daylight.

“You didn’t answer my question,” he finally stated after Phillip was gone. “Do you plan on battling someday?”

He was watching her, no longer pretending to be interested in the book in her hands. She sighed.

“I plan on traveling around, yes. I doubt I’m going to get very much headway staying here at the lab, however nice the perks have been. Shelter, food, a job. If someone I know is elsewhere and they don’t know what’s happened, I’ll need to leave and find them.”

“Do you plan on travelling alone, then? It seems like that’s the way you were when we found you. You had no pokémon on you and even if you did…it’d be illegally so.” He made that soft rattling laughter in the back of his throat. “I overheard that there’s been no leads with the police. You’re a female with no name, no face, no license. You’d need to get that license to travel more fully than on an assistant lab tech’s permit.”

“Quit trying to invite yourself. I’m not taking you. Or any of the others. If I was traveling alone without any pokémon, I must have had a good reason.”

_If I’m not human, than that alone must’ve been good reason. Alone, I can probably take care of myself._

Her thoughts were punctured through like a hot knife through butter by the rattling laughter and shaking body in her lap. “Do you expect me to believe you’ll fight off wild Pokémon on your own? With what, your bare hands? You don’t small human, but you certainly look it. A flock of Spearow would eat you alive if they had a mind and taste for it. You’re tiny for a person, but poison type pokémon are tinier. A Spinarak or Weedle would stab you in the foot and you’d never know it until you collapsed from its poison, too far from medical centers to get help.”

He regarded her with those glimmering, sunlit-struck eyes and the crimson set in gold seemed to burn brighter now. That crooked jaw seemed to grow even more crooked, white teeth sticking out sharply and she knew if she touched them, they’d break skin, calloused or not.

“You’ll need someone who isn’t afraid of you. You look human, but you don’t smell it and most pokémon will be able to tell right on the spot after a good whiff of your scent. A trainer’s pokémon might be polite about it and pretend everything is all right, for the most part. But a wild one will attack because you’re a threat. You’ll need a mediator between them and you. You _need_ me.”

His words rang and echoed in her ears and skull, rattling about until their comprehension smacked her hard like a sucker punch to the gut. Her brows drew up into a scowl, teeth clenching into a tight grimace as she peeled her lips back and she knew—she knew—he saw the flash of her fangs. Fangs too big for a small mouth like hers, too big for a human but she saw nothing in those cold eyes, no flicker of fear or anxiety to account for. Just curiosity.

“I do not need _you_. I do not need _them_ ,” she stabbed at the field where the pokémon romped and played for emphasis, her words coming in short hisses. She stood suddenly, book in hand, Totodile tumbling to the ground and landing on his side. He made an offended croaking noise, tail whipping like an agitated cat’s would. She picked up the folded lawn chair she’d brought out, snapping it shut and tucking it under her other arm. “When I go, it will be alone. If I was alone when you found me, it was for a reason. I might not remember, but it must’ve been a damned good one, especially if it spared me the rudeness of little brats like you for traveling company.”

She felt those reptilian eyes on her backside as she started for the lab, the grass plush and soft under her boots, but she barely noticed how well-kept and manicured the lawn was. She could only feel the heat of embarrassment rising up in her at having allowed the sneaky little Totodile get under her skin. But she kept telling herself what she’d told him as well: _I was alone for a reason._

The only thing she couldn’t figure out, the frustrating thing she couldn’t remember was why had she been alone in the first place?

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

True to Phillip’s word, Professor Elm had indeed registered Lupin for an assistant lab researcher’s permit. It came three days after he’d told her. It allowed her to officially represent Professor Elm’s lab, his research, and more importantly, handle his pokémon. Of course, others were allowed the same rights, but they were all registered as trainers. Children who were on the cusp of gaining their licenses via the schoolhouse in Violet City would either gain pokémon from their parents or, alternatively, gain a starter from Professor Elm.

“Not every trainer starts out with a Bulbasaur, Squirtle, or Charmander in Kanto. And the same can be said of beginning trainers in Johto. They don’t all start with a Chikorita, Totodile or Cyndaquil. Some start with a Meowth or Growlithe, or Eevee, Marill, Caterpie, Pidgey or Sentret, so on and so forth. Some inherit pokémon from their parents. Other times, parents get a friendly pokémon specifically tailored to small children, to indoctrinate them at an early age before giving them full responsibility of that pokémon. Other times, they’re sent here to pick out a starter.”

Lupin was only half-listening as she distributed food into bowls for the nightly feeding, although she nodded as the Professor continued.

“And not every trainer is out to challenge the League over at Indigo Plateau. Not every trainer is interested in collecting gym badges. Some are more interested in day care programs for pokémon, breeding them, or raising them specifically for certain lifestyles, like gardening, livestock and dairy, or even for research purposes.” He laughed and she glanced over her shoulder to see his pointed, yet kindly stare. She turned back to finishing up filling the bowls before stowing the food away in the cabinet with a faint nod.

“Does everyone who travels have to have pokémon?” She queried.

He frowned at her, hesitating before answering as he joined in picking up bowls to help with the feeding. “Not necessarily. But why would someone travel without pokémon?”

“Personal choice?”

“It’d be very dangerous, but…I don’t think it’s completely farfetched. Pokémon and humans have lived side by side for thousands of years. The relationship between the two has become a symbiotic one; we aren’t completely and utterly dependent on them or them on us. I’m sure we could do well on our own without them, and vice versa. But it would make it incredibly difficult without the helpfulness that they provide in our daily lives,” he finally admitted.

There was a pause in the conversation as they dropped off the first bowls for the group of pokémon: first the Professor’s lab pokémon, who shied away from Lupin, except Totodile. He shuffled forward on his hind legs, regarded her with those yellow and crimson eyes, gave off his rattling laugh and dipped his snout into the bowl without a word. The others only approached after she stepped away, albeit warily and watching her with sharp, mistrusting eyes. She turned back to the workbenches, where the rest of the bowls were.

“Come to think of it, _you_ were alone when I found you. No pokéballs, no pokémon, nothing whatsoever. Just the clothes on your back and what you had in your pockets. It’s all very strange.” Professor Elm frowned deeply, brow furrowing as he pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. He turned heel to follow the woman back to the workbench.

“Maybe it was for a reason?” _I was alone, alone for a reason, but for_ what _reason, and why?_

“Perhaps…but maybe something had happened to your pokémon. Something happened to you, that’s for sure, and I don’t think it’s just the amnesia. There are no records of you anywhere, or so I’m being told. Maybe somebody deleted your records, or they’re withholding them.”

 _That_ was certainly conspiracy theory-worthy. It did make her pause in picking up the next set of bowls, but it was brief and barely noticeable.

“Or maybe I fell out of the sky,” she joked. A beat passed and the professor laughed.

“Of course. Perhaps you were riding on the back of an ancient and rare pokémon that had plucked you up from some unknown land and dropped you here and stole away your memories,” he retaliated teasingly in kind. It helped ease the tension somewhat, dissipating the myriad of bad theories and thoughts that were beginning to form.

They finished feeding the pokémon and afterwards, corralled them back into their respective quarters to sleep the night away. When the last of them was safely put away, Lupin made for her makeshift room, bidding the professor goodnight.

Behind the relative safety of a closed door, she peeled away the leather coat she’d been wearing for a majority of the day. It was soft and supple, but durable enough to withstand wear and tear. It looked like it had endured plenty of it over what she could only assume several years’ worth. Her tail cricked and swayed, the muscles in her back feeling stiff from forcing it to remain still for a majority of the day. She knew the coat wasn’t completely foolproof, of course. The tail could be spotted from between her legs from the front, but for all people could know, the coat could be furry on the inside. Or something. Nobody’s made mention of it yet.

Maybe they even thought it was some sort of tail-hitched-to-back-of-pants fetish. Whatever worked, she was fine with it. She wasn’t going to be particularly picky at this point. She removed her hat next, and her ears stretched and swiveled, pinning to the side of her head, just as stiff from their confinement. Then she started on her daily ritual before bed, grabbing a pair of loose cotton pants and a loose t-shirt, then ducking into the connected bathroom to shower and brush her teeth. It was late when she finally stepped back into the makeshift bedroom. There was a pullout couch in the room, although from the scent of it, it wasn’t used very often. Not this one, anyway. There was a more often used one in the professor’s office, and another in Phillip’s. This was probably used for guests, and the last one…

Well, it’s been a long while since guests had stayed, that was for sure.

Slipping under the thick comforter, she curled up, bunching a bundle to wedge between her legs as she rolled onto her side. She sighed, eyes darting around the room as they adjusted abnormally quickly to the darkness of the room. She could make out the edges of the walls, light switch by the door, the desk and its various booklets and paperwork piled on top. If she wanted, she could probably read every word in this darkness without repercussions to her eyesight.

She remembered it being written in the journal that werewolves had perfect night vision. It almost seemed like something out of a fable or a story, and not real life. And yet here was the living evidence: fangs, claws, ears, tail. Great ears, eyesight, nose…

And then there was that whole deal with the full moon.

She hadn’t thought of that, and suddenly a panic hit her and she sat up, stumbling out of bed and toward the window and throwing the blinds up. They rattled and beat against one another, one side skewing as she yanked the cord, the other dipping dangerously low. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass, eyes searching for the moon. Already, the stars were glittering coldly in the dark sky, but she could see no moon. It was bright out, though. That meant it was close. It had to be. But she needed to know how close.

She unlocked the window and threw it up before ducking through it. The grass was cool under her bare feet, and the air had a pleasant chill to it, although she paid neither much mind to either. She turned around to face back toward the lab, searching the sky above it and finally spotted the silvery-white disc, bloated and nearly full. Her heart skipped. _Just a few more days. Just a few days and I…_

She shuddered, swallowing thickly. She still found it hard to believe she’d turn into some flesh-eating monster.

_Maybe it’s an exaggeration. Maybe it’s a metaphor for something else, maybe…_

The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her otherwise.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	5. News

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Four:  
News**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“So, do you want the good news first or the bad news?”  
“Is the order at all relevant?”  
“You know, people like to get the bad news first so the conversation ends in happiness.”  
_ **-Booth and Dr. Brennan, “ _Bones_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She woke with a start, her heart thundering away in her chest and a cold sweat drenching her. Her limbs were shaking as she sat up while trying to steady her erratic, panicky breaths. It took a minute or two to focus as she stared around the darkened room. A hand flew to grip the side of her head, to run through her sweat-covered hair. Already, whatever it was that had awoken her was gone. It was the same as every night. She knew she had nightmares, of something dark and unnatural and terrifying; she felt that panic and fear every time she woke up, but upon waking…nothing. No trace of what it was, no memory stuck. Nothing was remembered, except that lingering terror that made her gut clench and twist in the pit of her abdomen, and the continuous feeling of unrest.

Swinging her legs over the pullout couch, she tottered toward the bathroom, not bothering to turn on the lights and started up the shower. She stripped clumsily, her hands shaking like leaves in the wind. Finally, she pulled herself into the steady stream of water, tense muscles slowly easing and relaxing as the heat applied itself. She checked her waterproof watch on her wrist and grimaced. Four-thirty in the morning…no way she was getting back to sleep now. She quickly washed up, wondering why she had even bothered with nightly showers when she did the same in the morning after her night terrors woke her. Soon, she felt the shakes and uneasy feeling leave her, and she felt somewhat normal by the time she finished in the shower.

By five, she was dressed and clean, and went to the little kitchenette to eat something, anything, to ease her still roiling stomach. She found some bagels and a tub of cream cheese as a result of her searching. She eased into the makeshift breakfast, not really feeling the urge to cook. By five-thirty, she finished and brewed some coffee and filled a mug for herself. Then she turned to the morning ritual of preparing the pokémon’s food bowls.

When six came rolling on by, she was finished filling the bowls and a third of the way with distributing the food to the wary creatures. Phillip made his way into the lab not long after, stretching and rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Morning,” he greeted with a yawn.

“There’s a fresh pot of coffee waiting,” she replied, giving a curt nod in return toward the kitchen. His face lit up and he made a beeline for the room with a hurried ‘oh thank Arceus’. Her ears gave the faintest twitch under her hat at that, and a question bubbled up at the name ‘ _Arceus’_ , although she squirreled it away for later conversation. Another pokémon name, she was sure, but she didn’t recognize it. Then again, there were many she didn’t recognize. She refocused on the task of doling out the morning food to the pokémon. Professor Elm came hurrying into the lab just as she finished the last of the feedings and was gathering up a few empty bowls.

He was in a hurry, she noted off the bat, anxious and excited and agitated in his movements. Lupin paused to watch his excitement with curiosity plainly painting her face, although the professor didn’t seem to notice. Phillip came out of the kitchen bearing two mugs while sipping from one. He came to stand beside Lupin, who was drinking from her own mug that she had brought out with her.

“Is…he okay?”

“He gets like this sometimes. Especially close to presentations.”

“Presentations?” She queried back, looking puzzled. Phillip made a soft noise at the back of his throat.

“Ohhh, that’s right. You don’t know—sorry,” he said before clearing his throat. “Professor Elm travels all over to present his research findings every couple of months to different regions, alongside other head researchers and professors. Seminars and conferences, mostly. There’s going to be one in Kanto in about a week, so he’s been preparing everything since the last one, including new discoveries to his studies. He’ll be leaving for Goldenrod tomorrow morning. He’ll only be gone for a week, mind you, it’s a small conference, so you don’t have to worry too much.”

“And you?”

“Oh, I sometimes go, when it’s necessary. But that usually means finding somebody else to look after the lab and the pokémon, so I don’t usually go. Most labs can afford two assistances, but Professor Elm has only had me for the last few years. Hasn’t really petitioned to get another assistant. Well, up until you came along of course.” He grinned, took another drink and added, “But I’m staying this trip, so you don’t have to worry about being here alone. You don’t know how to run all the machinery and equipment here in the lab, and I have to be here to monitor them. For example, we have several medical panels that take several days to run for results, and somebody needs to be here when they finish up. We’re running several as of right now, otherwise I would have gone if nothing of high importance was pending results.”

He shrugged, as though that was the best explanation he could offer. Lupin quirked her lips, but didn’t press for further details. So the professor was leaving. That crossed off one less thing to worry about. She still felt a kind of skittishness about Phillip remaining around, however, if…well…

Her thoughts came to a halt when the professor came hurrying over, as though suddenly attuned to Lupin and Phillip’s existence in the lab. The first thing Phillip did was offer the mug of coffee, and the professor nabbed it without a word and took a long draft. He drained nearly half of it before sighing in relief.

“Oh, thank you. I needed that. Now. On to business. Phillip, I’ll be taking a few of the pokémon with me,” he nodded to the taller man. Phillip twitched, suddenly alert to the notion.

“Not the starters, I hope?”

“No, no. I know it’s nearing that season again, although this year seems to be very slim pickings. Not many trainers leaving for their journey and needing our starters, I’m afraid. The pokémon might be waiting a little longer than usual, but I’ll leave them here, just in case we get an unexpected caller.”

Then the professor looked to Lupin. “As for you…I actually have a request for you, if you’re up to it, that is.”

This piqued Lupin’s interest, as well as Phillip’s. Catching the other man’s inquiring gaze, Professor Elm smiled. “It’s Mr. Pokémon again. He’s found another intriguing item.”

Lupin, understandably, didn’t quite comprehend, although from the resigned sigh from Phillip, he did.

“Another ‘rare’ oddity, I presume?”

“Actually, yes. It’s a pokémon egg this time, though,” the professor nodded, then glanced back at Lupin and her disquieted gaze and explained, “Mr. Pokémon is merely a nickname our associate’s gained over the last several years. His real name’s Graham Wardson, but everyone calls him by Mr. Pokémon because, well…he has his eccentricities.”

He motioned for the two to follow him to an open workstation across the way from the nursery where the starter pokémon were ambling about in. The other pokémon were in their rooms as well, until afternoon playtime. The only one out and about was Phillip’s Meowth, who was rarely seen, except around mealtimes. She didn’t care much for playing, so it seemed to Lupin.

Professor Elm booted up the computer and after a few minutes of awkwardly waiting for the system to warm up, he pulled up his email inbox. The most recent email was selected and a quick selection of the attached files showed pictures of an egg, just as he’d said. Lupin stared and Phillip made a surprised noise.

“Is that a _Togepi_ egg? How in the hell did he get his hands on _that_? They’re incredibly rare, especially the eggs!”

“That’s what I need found out. I need you here at the lab while I’m gone, Phillip, so perhaps if Lupin is up for the task, she could travel to Mr. Pokémon’s home and retrieve it.”

“That’s nearly a week’s travel there and another back again, Professor Elm,” Phillip said with a hint of reservation in his tone. Lupin ignored it, intent on the photograph on the screen. She leaned forward a little more, to study it. The photograph was a little grainy on the details, but it was clear enough to be identified as an egg, and it was a strange looking one at that. It was largish, a clean and pristine white, with intermittent triangular designs in bright blue and red spotting the eggshell.

“What’s a Togepi?” She raised her voice above the two’s fervent whispering. The back and forth stopped behind her and she straightened, looking between the two men. Professor Elm cleared his throat.

“Togepi are incredibly rare pokémon. Researchers are rarely afforded the chance to study one up close. We have no clue where they breed or live, only that on very rare occasions, an egg appears, usually among breeders or daycare centers. And this is an equally rare chance to study one. Not many trainers have them to begin with, and are rather protective of them.”

Lupin nodded a bit, understanding. Rare pokémon. Got it. She could tell by the tone of his voice and the sudden waft of hormones that he was simple awash in giddiness at the prospect of seeing one. Excited for science, apparently.

She motioned toward the computer screen. “And you wanted me to just…go to this guy’s house and pick up the egg?”

“Well…that’s the thing. It’s almost a week there, and then almost a week back. He lives a ways away. Not—not like in Olivine or Cianwood, no. It’s past the next town, Cherrygrove City, but well before Violet City or the Dark Cave. There’s a road you can follow pretty much all the way there, so it’d be hard to get lost.” He smiled, as though that did sound easy enough. Lupin frowned, a little unnerved, although she tried to keep it off her face. She drummed her fingers against the desk as she leaned on it. Phillip took her extended silence as way of an answer and turned to the professor.

“If you can wait until you get back from your conference, I can go. You shouldn’t be sending her out, she—”

“Hey. I’m right here,” she interrupted, shooting the other man a peeved look. She hated it when either of them did that. Treating her like she was delicate or wasn’t in the same room as them when they talked about her. Phillip closed his mouth with an audible clack of his teeth, looking appropriately abashed at being chastised by the small woman. She sighed, lips pursed. She wanted to know what was going to happen a few nights from now, and she couldn’t do that here, not with the professor or Phillip around. If she changed…if there was a risk of being seen…

She finally gave a jerking nod.

“I’ll go. I’ve been feeling cooped up lately. I think maybe…getting out would be good for me, ya know?”

A pensive, thoughtful look crossed Professor Elm’s visage for a moment, while Phillip looked uncertainly onward at the young woman. She shot him another warning look. She was an amnesiac, not an invalid. She nearly opened her mouth to say as such, to remind him that she wasn’t a helpless child, but the professor cut in quickly before the words could form on her tongue.

“Great! Now, I know I have an extra satchel around here somewhere, you could borrow that—and I can have any supplies you’ll need for the trip charged to the lab, just go out in town and get it, you’ll be all right. As for a pokémon, I suppose I could lend you one of the starters. Let them get a chance to see a little more of the world—”

Lupin cut him off abruptly with a wave of her hands.

“Whoa, whoa. Hold it. I don’t need a pokémon. I can get along fine without one.”

The chipper and beaming expression the professor had been exuding crumpled in on itself, replaced by perplexity and worry.

“You found me alone. It probably was for a reason.”

“Your team could’ve been separated from you…” The argument was already down before it could achieve lift. Phillip fell silent at another steely gaze sent his way.

“No records of me. Remember? No team, no identity. And not everyone travels with pokémon. You told me that, professor. I can manage.”

“But do you even know how to survive in the wild if you got lost?”

“Boil water, don’t burn green stuff, don’t eat weird plants, use the sun as a pinpoint for location. Using a map helps too.” It was all off the top of her head, but she felt a familiarity with the prospect of camping in the woods. Besides, she had more power to her senses, more range and strength to rely on. She doubted she could get lost _that_ easily.

“I’m an amnesiac, not an invalid,” she finally stated, the words suddenly booming back to the forefront of her mind. “I can handle myself. You said it yourself, there’s a road that I can follow. I doubt wild pokémon jump on the main path looking for a fight.”

“You’d be surprised,” Phillip muttered, although from the look on his face, he could already see nothing he had to say would affect her decision. The professor reflected this, but he looked…worried. More so than she would have liked.

“If you think you can handle it…I mean, you _did_ come tumbling out of the mountains, and if you’re right about it, you came out alone. And that’s pretty rough territory. I don’t understand why you’d want to do it by yourself, but you must have had your reasons, and…you must’ve been good enough to avoid being attacked by wild pokémon in that mountain range without pokémon of your own. They’re very powerful, so it is rather impressive…”

 _It probably helps not being a human,_ Lupin thought impassively, only giving him a quiet nod. But it did add another question to the growing list: why would she be roaming the mountains alone? Another question she had no answers to. She sighed, downing the last of her coffee, then started for the kitchen.

“I’ll go to the store now, if that’s all right. I’d like to make use of all the daylight I have and get some headway.”

“Of course. I’ll have to find that satchel, but it’ll be waiting for you when you get back.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It was midmorning by the time Lupin returned, laden with supplies she had charged to the lab’s tab—although she kept things on the simple side and didn’t go for the most expensive items. If she left the lab for a more permanent extended period of time, she could upgrade later on. Phillip was attending to the pokémon while the professor was compiling all his research for travel when she got back. She eyed the various creatures that skittered about the main floor of the lab, but some stopped to stare beadily at her. She froze at their stares, a brief falter in her steps, before skirting around them. She felt their eyes on her as she moved to a more secluded section of the lab, placing her gear on an empty work table.

Phillip paused in his activities, giving her a faint nod, then motioned to the professor’s office.

“He’s found the satchel. Pretty sturdy looking thing. Might want to start packing if you want to get out of here by noon.” He hesitated, then added, “You don’t have to go.”

“I want to go. I’ll be fine.”

From the tension in his frame, the knitting of his brow, and the way he pursed his lips, she could tell he didn’t quite believe that. On a certain level, she could understand. She wasn’t exactly the average person. She didn’t know who she was, or where she’d come from, and it might have affected her judgment to a point. What she might have been confident and well learned in, she might not have that in her current state.

But to have doubt lingering in the air was like allowing poison to remain. It left a bad taste in the back of her mouth. She felt a small amount of guilt for worrying the two, but at the same time, she didn’t want to be babied and fussed over. She wasn’t a child, far from it. From the dog tags and her birth date coinciding with the current one, she was in her early thirties. She could hardly call herself defenseless. Maybe she was a little clueless on some of the inner workings with the world at the moment, to be honest, but not completely and utterly incompetent. She could figure things out.

She offered a meek smile, trying to look reassuring and she waved a hand at him, as though to dispel those doubts and worries. Phillip paused as he stooped toward the ground, Chikorita tumbling toward him, although the little creature kept a leery eye on Lupin. “If I run into trouble, I’m sure I can smoke signal you guys. Trust me. I think a few days out and about would benefit me more than staying cooped up or wandering around town. Besides…that guy at the Pokémart keeps hitting on me. I dunno if he’s joking or being serious anymore.”

Recognition lit up in Phillip’s eyes as he straightened, cradling the little Chikorita in his arms. She nuzzled against him, somewhat content. “What, Gabe? He’s harmless. He does the same to me when I make pickups or orders.”

“Oh. I…was honestly not expecting that.” She blinked, a little taken aback, but she calmed. Okay, she could roll with that. Phillip laughed, patted Chikorita gently on the head and set her back down to let her go traipsing off after Cyndaquil and Totodile. A Granbull, Pidgeotto, and Sentret trio watched from nearby, calm and relaxed. Phillip’s Meowth, Jewel, soon joined the three, quiet and slinky, eyes half-closed in a lazy manner.

“Yeah, Gabe’s quite a character, but he’s pretty harmless. He flirts with any new face that comes his way, but he generally doesn’t make any real moves on anyone who doesn’t reciprocate. Says it ‘goes against his code’ or something of the sort. You’re not the first, you won’t be the last,” Phillip explained, coming over to eye the parcels that Lupin had slowly been unpacking as they spoke.

He sifted through one or two items, but largely remained quiet about her choices. He did pause at a book she had picked up while at the store, and a thin, wry smile lifted his lips up.

“You say you don’t have any interests in taking any pokémon with you, but you snagged a book about them.”

“I’d rather have an idea of what’s out there. Better to know what you’re facing than running around blindly. I’m not completely inept.” She responded, turning to start toward the professor’s office. She could hear him rummaging about, making a commotion, and she hoped the satchel didn’t get reburied. “I’ll finish packing and clean up a little in the room I was using before going.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She left a little later then she would have liked, but it didn’t deter her from putting as much distance between her and New Bark Town. It was bright and balmy, the temperature comfortable, as it had been for the last few weeks. She’d bought a map to study the routes to find Mr. Pokémon’s home, and Professor Elm had been right: the trails were pretty straightforward. It would be difficult to lose her way between here and there. She practically didn’t need a map.

Hefting the pack more securely onto her shoulders, she kept a steady pace down the road. In New Bark Town, it was small but modernized in the barest of senses. The townspeople didn’t want to dull the sense of traditional travel with too many cars or other motorized vehicles. People walked nearly everywhere, with few exceptions. Pokémon seemed to be the favored source of transportation if speed was needed, such as those that can utilize Teleport or Fly, or Surf for those encountering bodies of water too big to cross without aide. And then there were those pokémon large enough that humans could ride upon their backside, which helped ease some traveling burdens….

Or at least, that’s what Lupin had read in one of the books she had found lying around the lab.

Her shoulders only ached in the slightest when she finally stopped to pitch for camp later that evening. Digging up a fire pit, collecting firewood, and unpacking a few pieces of her gear took less than an hour. From the smell of things, there was another camp not too far from her, perhaps a mile up the road, the fire already crackling away. Faintly, she could hear voices, just barely, woven together with the settling daytime noises and the awakening nocturnal sounds.

 _Other trainers,_ her mind automatically supplied before belated, she added, _but I’m not a trainer, just a traveler._

She got her own campfire going, and stalled in setting up the rest of her gear to enjoy the smoky scent for a few minutes. With a sigh, she finally resigned herself to pulling out a quickie meal she could warm up over the fire.

When it grew dark, she shed her jacket and tipped her hat off, allowing her ears and tail to stretch as she ate. The chirruping of daily birds all but ceased as the sun had gone down and when the darkness settled, the realm of nocturnal creatures began to spring to life in earnest. Insects chirruped and buzzed. The occasional hoot of an owl echoed faintly. Her ears gave a languid twitch every once in a while at the noises, finding them somewhat comforting compared to the constant humming of all the machinery that littered the lab. She wouldn’t go so far as to call it _familiar_ in the sense of recognition, but it was reassuring at the very least. Everything she had done had been automatic, without thought, and her body seemed to know more of what to do than her own headspace did. Skills she doesn’t remember learning coming to life as her hands worked made her wonder just what kind of life she led. It wasn’t the first time and she knew it wouldn’t be the last, either.

She poked at the fire after she was done, occasionally diverting embers here or a branch there to evenly distribute things and keep it going. She checked her watch, gave her surroundings a scan before tossing her stick into the fire. Time to turn in, she reasoned, if she wanted an early start.

Gathering her unused gear, she started tucking them away into her bag, but paused when she spotted something…out of place. Something she was sure she hadn’t put in. Reaching in, she wrapped her hand around it, felt the smoothness of its rounded shell and lifted. Her hand barely pulled it beyond the lip of the pack before recognition sprung on her and a split second later, the smooth pokéball she had in her hand split open.

A startled snarl-gasp strangled itself in her throat, lodged and unmoving as light bounced away from the core of the split device and landed squarely in front of her. Already she could feel her blood boiling as the silhouette took form and solidified.

Blue scales and crimson ridge plates gleamed in the firelight, with yellow-red eyes reflecting briefly, turning white-green. Then the head turned and a crooked smile eased itself on Totodile’s face and her tail bristled at the croaky, rattling laugh he gave off.

“’Bout time you let me out. I was starting to get bored sitting in that thing.”

He gave a sniff, words failing to come to mind as Lupin stared, both dumbly and angrily at the reptilian pokémon. He ambled past her toward the fire and plopped in front of it, looking as comfy as can be.

“You wouldn’t happen to have any pokémon chow, would you? I haven’t eaten since this afternoon.”

Lupin scowled, finally mustering up something somewhat intelligible.

“You… _sneaky_ little bastard. No, I do _not_ have any pokémon chow because I didn’t _plan_ on bringing any pokémon! How in the hell did you even get in there?”

“Phillip and the professor. They didn’t want you travelling alone, despite your protests. You know, you’re being very stupid about not wanting some protection. Don’t you remember what I told you about the poison bug-types that roam these forests?” He glanced at her with half-lidded eyes, snorting. “How is it you survived this long without being killed by wandering alone in the wilderness without any pokémon? Stupid.”

“Well, I apparently survived long enough and I don’t need the opinion of some bratty gator that isn’t even a year old on my life choices.” Lupin narrowed her eyes, realizing this was getting her nowhere. She remembered she could end it by sending the pokémon back and lifted the pokéball still clutched in her hand. Totodile was immediately on the alert, his body tense as he arched his back and reared up to his hind legs. A hiss emanated from his slightly open maw. She snarled back.

“Stop that! I’m taking you back to the professor _right_ _now_ , so help me!”

“You can’t! It’s nighttime, you don’t know what’s out there and—”

Lupin cut him short. _Screw being polite,_ she thought. _He’s been a pain in my ass since day one._

“I can see quite well in the dark, thanks. Pretty damn sure I’ll be fine.”

“So you’re going to waste your time hiking back to the professor’s lab, in the middle of the night, _just_ to drop me off?” He sounded rather peeved and disappointed, chastising even, as though he was noticing something she wasn’t. And it irked her that he spoke as though he knew more. “He’s only going to insist you take me if you do that. You might as well not waste your time. He’s not asking you to keep me, he’s asking me to keep _you_ safe until you return from your errand. That pokémon egg is valuable, he said.”

Her tail bristled again, but she finally realized his point. Despite her protests earlier that morning, both the professor and Phillip had gone against her wishes and stuffed the little monster into her pack. They’d deliberately tagged him along as a stowaway for her trip. They wouldn’t take him back, not until she returned with the egg. She scowled, dropping her hand with the pokéball still grasped in it and the urge to smash it was tempting. Pokemon freed from their pokéballs were considered wild, weren’t they? Trainer-less and free to roam, and she tensed, coiled to break it on the ground. Then the urge passed and she let her arm hang by her side before tossing it listlessly back into her pack.

“Fine. You win for now. Don’t fuck with my fire, I want it going for as long as possible.”

“I wouldn’t _dream_ of putting out this heat source, unless it became necessary. It’s chilly out, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

She hadn’t, in fact. She felt fine, warm and cozy and the air didn’t feel that cold to her. It was still as balmy as it was during the daylight hours, in fact. But from the close vicinity the water pokémon had placed himself in accordance with the fire, she figured it must’ve been a huge difference being cold-blooded. She chose not to answer, and instead turned toward her sleeping bag and after a second thought, dragged the satchel over closer to use a pillow. She paused long enough to drag out some food and tore open the packaging, setting it out. “Here. Eat some of this.”

Totodile made no moves, eyeing her with half-lidded eyes, nostrils flaring then settling. She felt a little unnerved at the penetrating, unblinking gaze that held hers. She looked away, busying herself with her sleeping bag.

“You look different.”

The observation was a simple one, but the admission surprised her nonetheless. She paused, glancing back at the pokémon.

“Yes, well…that’s not necessarily a good thing. That’s why I wear the coat and hat,” she said as her ears gave a faint twitch. Kicking her legs into the sleeping bag, she had to keep her tail’s fur from bunching and pinching in the confined space before settling. There was a moment of silence between them as she rolled over on her side, facing away from the fire.

She heard the scuffle of his tail dragging along on the ground, shuffling closer toward the food she’d offered moments before. Then, “It looks better.”

Lupin was rather unsure of how to approach that, so she instead, she said nothing. What else could she say to a little reptile that would otherwise insult her? She just didn’t have it in her to argue and instead closed her eyes, not exactly looking forward to sleep but unwilling to pass it up. She’d need the energy for tomorrow, after all.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

** **


	6. Partner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Five:  
Partner**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“Wanna be my friend?”_  
“No, you scare me a little.”  
**-House and Lucas, “ _House M.D._ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

For once, she woke without feeling like she was caught in the iron vice grip of terror and confusion. Instead, she woke groggily, almost pleasantly, with a slight weight pressing down on her chest. At first it was barely discernible and she had thought it was merely her perception of the weight of her sleeping bag. But after several belated seconds of trying—and failing—to not focus on it, she realized she could feel bumps and contours through the material, that something was curled on top of her chest and abdomen, something _alive_.

She sprung up with a startled gasp, flinging whatever it was that had been sleeping on top of her into her lap, before it slid onto the ground beside her. Immediately, she found herself transitioning from alarmed to fuming. Blue scales, crimson back plates, yellow-red eyes—that damned Totodile. She found herself tongue-tied, too angry and shocked and—well, she wasn’t quite sure about the rest, but she sure as hell wasn’t expecting a sneaky little reptile to share her sleeping space.

When she finally managed to collect a few words, she did so with utmost care, enunciating each word so that nothing could be misunderstood.

“What…do you think you were doing?”

“Well, I _was_ sleeping, until you so rudely tossed me onto the ground. Now I’m all dirty, thanks for that,” he said in kind. He sounded just as snippy and cross, as though she were the sole offender in this. Lupin’s tail bristled and her ears pinned against her head. The sun was barely up and she was already seeing it to be an extremely long day ahead of her. She didn’t deem his response with one of her own. Instead, she decided it was too early to deal with this back and forth banter he was obviously expecting and hoping for.

She opted for the silent treatment, although she did shoot him one more nasty glare before getting out of her sleeping bag and began putting on her boots. Totodile eyed her from the spot he had landed on, quiet for once, but it didn’t last long. He snorted, short and quick before pushing up to his hind legs and waddling over to the fire pit or what was left of it.

“The fire died and it was cold. You are…very warm. Warmer than any human I’ve met.”

That had her pause, just as she finished lacing her second boot up and she glanced at him, admittedly a little surprised. It lessened her somewhat inflamed temper, bringing it down a few notches. Pursing her lips, she stood and turned toward the sleeping bag, brushing it off and rolling it up as she went.

“Yeah, well…I’m not exactly human, now am I?” She finally replied, giving her tail a purposeful swish. Totodile watched, and she swore she saw something flash in those yellow-red eyes, something akin to interest. She finished rolling it up and whirled the latches around it, snapped them into place, and loaded it back onto her satchel. Then she began fishing out food for the morning, along with a bottle of water, and some matches.

“You don’t need to hide it today. I doubt there will be many humans on the road today.”

Lupin glanced back at him, a frown tugging at her lips before she turned her gaze toward the main path, not too far from where she had veered from in order to camp. Her ears gave a few experimental twitches and she craned her neck to listen in on the direction of the other camp ahead of them. She gave a sniff, a plethora of scents rushing in and already, she deemed most unimportant, some interesting, and the rest of importance. Two trainers, young, both female, carrying at least two Pokemon each: one feline, two birds, a rat. Meowth, Pidgey, Rattata, her mind suddenly supplied and generic photos of them sprung forth, textbook observation photos from one of the many books in the lab.

She sighed at last, shaking her head.

“There’re trainers up ahead. Even if we passed them, I’d rather not risk them catching up and…seeing.”

Totodile snorted. “Doubtful. They’ll probably spend the day bumbling about in the woods and tall grass, looking for more pokémon.” He paused, as though calculating his next response before adding, “Although if they don’t do that and continue down the road, I see your point.”

She had a gut feeling that keeping things on the down low was the best route to take. She still didn’t quite understand, but it was the only thing she had to go on, the only thing she trusted at this point. Understandably, she felt less inclined to trust her headspace with anything beyond daily activities. Although, for now, in this spot, she felt somewhat safe to keep things out for the time being. She managed to get things set up, the fire going, and air filled with the smoky scent of wood burning. Again, a sense of not-quite-familiarity-but-close wove its way into her, making her feel somewhat more relaxed. It was a constant, a comfort, and perhaps it was a mite more familiar than she realized. The sky grew lighter, and the air thickened with soft mist as the food cooked. Totodile sat on one side of the fire, warming himself up, and she on the other. It was, for once, a good kind of silence she was sharing with the reptile, surprisingly.

“You were whimpering in your sleep last night,” he finally said, his voice quiet. Lupin twitched in surprise at the sudden intrusion of his voice stabbing through the quietness. She turned her head to look at him, although he kept his gaze locked on the fire. Smoke curled into the air and he watched it lift and disappear. She waited for more and was rewarded for her patience.

“I tried to wake you up. You…calmed down when I got on top of you. I don’t know why. But you did. So I left you alone and stayed there, just in case. And it really was cold, so it was a win-win situation, I suppose.”

Her breath caught in her throat and she wasn’t entirely sure if it was from fear or trepidation—perhaps both, and more—because she wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.

“Did…did I say anything? A name? A place?” She ventured, trying not to sound desperate for answers, although she was sure she failed. Totodile regarded her with half-lidded eyes, tilted his head a little, as though to view her better.

“What’s in it for me?”

“Dammit, please!” She shouted, realizing too late how loud that had sounded. Nearby Pidgey fled from the treetops, screeching in surprise and annoyance. A few Rattata and Sentret barreled out of the grass and through the trees, squeaking in irritation as they ran away. She reeled in her temper, setting her jaw and inhaling slowly before adding, “Please. Just…did I say anything? I…I-I need to know. Please, just…for once, don’t be such a brat. I’m letting you stay, aren’t I?”

She didn’t know if she had once been for pleading. Maybe, maybe not. But at this moment in time, she was. She didn’t just want to know, she _needed_ to know. If it gave her a clue of where to look, or even who to look for, it was better than having nothing to grasp at all.

They held one another’s gazes for several long moments, she would even hazard to guess nearly a full minute, before he looked away first. It felt like a small victory, although she didn’t savor it.

“All right, fine,” he finally conceded with what passed as a sigh. “It was hard to make out, but…I think the name you said, it was something like…it sounded like ‘Alastor’.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

A name. She had a name. And it was one she’d seen in her book.

The next hour or so passed in a blur as she flipped through the leather bound book, a pen out to mark each page she found that name in. Her errand was nearly forgotten and only a reminder from the sour looking Totodile had her grudgingly pack up. Afterwards, they started anew down the beaten path that led to Mr. Pokémon’s house past the rural forests and cities in between.

During that time, she poured over the entries. She ignored the things about Rougarous, Wendigos, witches, kelpies, spirits, and vampires. She looked for the personal ones, the words that spoke of a life outside hunting strange monsters that seemed to have little or no influence in this world. A name. She had a _name_.

She flipped to the last page, already knowing there was no entry there, but she looked anyway, almost as though she was expecting some new entry to appear with all the answers she needed, wanted. The entry was the same as ever, no magically added ones tailing after it and she sighed. It was something about called ‘kitsunes’, magically endowed nine-tailed fox demons. Something of the like. It was detailed and interesting, but completely useless to her situation.

She sighed as she slipped back to one of the few dog-eared pages, rereading the entry, then flipped to another, and then another, before she came to the last entry involving this ‘Alastor’ figure. There wasn’t much, but it was enough to paint her a vague picture that this was someone she knew personally, someone who knew her, someone who might be a good friend, or maybe family member. They were someone important to her, at the very least.

_And I’m trying to remember them._

It was a sliver of hope, at the very least. But it was overshadowed by the fact that she couldn’t remember dreaming about them.

She finally closed the book and replaced it back in her satchel as she walked, sparing a fleeting glance at the Totodile trotting beside her on all fours. He seemed focused on the trail ahead of them, quiet and barren and quite empty of any other trainers for quite a while. Lupin couldn’t smell any others for miles, so she had finally taken off her hat, letting her ears stretch.

“Hey. We should stop.”

She glanced at him, but didn’t falter in her steps.

“Hey!”

Fangs sank into her ankle, piercing through the jeans she wore and into her skin. She let out a strangled yelp, both surprised at the attack and from the strength that flipped her down onto the ground. Her teeth clacked at the force in which she hit the ground.

“Get off, _get off_!” She tried kicking with her other foot, but she only met thin air where the sneaky reptile had been. Suddenly the weight she had felt earlier that morning where he’d lain on top of her was back again. A long, toothy snout and yellow-red eyes filled her vision, a snarl resounding in her ears.

“Let’s be clear about something so that we don’t confuse things in the near future. I am here not because I like you, it was because none of the Professor’s other pokémon were willing to be around you for longer than necessary. _They_ are afraid of you, whereas _I_ am not. And that means while I am on this trip, I am not some mindless beast that will starve and march itself onwards just to make _you_ happy for whatever reason that comes to your mind. We stop and rest because it will be our best friend in the long run, _especially_ if we run into wild pokémon.”

She stared, dumbfounded and speechless. She worked her mouth, but no words came out. She wasn’t entirely sure whether to be offended, angry, or impressed that such a miniscule little beast could render her as such. Another delayed beat passed before she snarled back, and without really thinking about it, she flicked him away. It was barely a smack, a touch, but it flung him off of her and into the dirt a few feet away with surprising force. He shook his head, stunned and pulled himself to his feet, nostrils flared and eyes turning to mere slits.

Lupin twisted onto her side and leapt to her own feet, jaw set tightly. “And let’s get something straight on my end: I am not your trainer, but I sure as hell won’t have you bossing me around. You’re a stowaway, and one thing I know about stowaways is that they don’t get the nice little privileges that I’ve been affording you. So, the new regime around here is we stop when I say, we rest when I say, and we eat when I say. You don’t make the rules, I do. I carry your pokéball, and I can just as easily leave you in there the entire trip and you definitely wouldn’t starve then, or complain or bite or threaten me. If you want to stay out and stick around, I suggest you get it through your head that you aren’t the boss.”

_This was a mistake,_ she realized. She should have taken him back and if the professor or Phillip refused, she could have just as easily left the pokéball on the lab’s front steps. And this wasn’t how she planned her trip away from the lab either. She needed privacy, instinct told her she needed to be alone when the moon was full. She couldn’t afford the little blue pest to see…

Cue the secondary standoff of the day, one that didn’t rely on her getting information out of the damnable reptile, but one that required saying who was in charge and who wasn’t. She could see the gears turning behind those yellow-red eyes, although to what goal they were working toward, she wasn’t sure. When he looked away at last with flared nostrils, she knew she’d won once more, but she wondered how many of these were left in either of them. How many more times would they bash heads before the end of the trip, fighting for dominance? She wondered if other people had this much difficulty with one of their pokémon. Then the thought was chased away when she reminded herself that she wasn’t a trainer.

_I barely have a license as a lab assistant. And that was brought on as a nicety, not because I’d earned it._

The thought brought on a bitter taste at the back of her mouth and she had to swallow it back down without gagging. Sighing, she glanced back down the way they were headed.

“One more hour. Then we’ll stop and rest.”

“The forest doesn’t end in an hour. We’re headed toward the haunted forest.”

She stared at him, surprised and dubious.

“Haunted…forest? As in…spirits?”

“Ghost type pokémon. They make the passage through difficult. The professor told me about it before he put me in your bag. You’ll need to find the guide’s house and rent a pokémon from her.”

“Why didn’t he tell me this?” _And why wasn’t it marked on the map, for that matter…?_

“He didn’t want to overwhelm you. He said we should pass through it as quickly as possible, but we do need to rest before we start. It’ll take the rest of the day to get through.”

She studied Totodile, still somewhat dubious about his claims and suddenly angry with the professor. Why would he even ask her to go if he didn’t trust her to get through it on her own? Why bother in agreeing to let her go it alone and then turn around and betray that? That urge to turn heel and march straight back to New Bark Town was strong, almost as though a burning coal was growing hotter in her chest at the indignation at the situation.

“He wanted you safe.”

“He barely knows me.”

“Yes, true. A bit stupid. But he believes in the good in people. He also believes that people deserve second chances. You got that the moment I pulled you out of the lake and he brought you to the lab. He could have kicked you to the curb or left you at the police station. Instead, he brought you to the lab and gave you a temporary home with a roof and food, and gave you a job, however meager it is. Don’t throw that in his face.” Totodile cocked his head to the side. “He trusts you enough to help him with this. He didn’t want you going off alone, though. We’ve been lucky a flock of Spearow or a pack of Raticate hasn’t attacked, but it’s not too late. Maybe the ghosts will get you.”

He laughed, shaking his angled head before motioning toward the side of the road. “I told you, rest will be your best friend. And you’ll need it before the forest. After that, we’ll reach Florando. We can rest in a pokémon center there, free room and board for the night. And all the hot chow I can get.”

He seemed so sure and so…smug about it. It really grated her nerves, but she realized, he did have a point. She would have been overwhelmed by the information. To have someone to share that mental burden with, it was the slightest relief she was actually grateful for. Then a thought hit her.

“Wait. How did the professor know you’d get this information to me in one piece? He can’t understand you.”

“He knows you can speak to and understand pokémon.” The answer was said rather bluntly, with a hint of ‘ _are you really that stupid?_ ’ coating his tone. She resisted the urge to scowl.

“H-how…?”

“He’s a _professor_. He’s not a complete idiot, he _does_ notice things, ya know. He hasn’t gained that prestigious title for his charming people skills, I can say that much.” He eyeballed her with a little more steel to his gaze, rattling laughter sounding off in his throat again. “He noticed it from day one when you first met us. He feigned ignorance for the time being. I told you before. You’re a rarity in the world. Very few people can understand pokémon. Call it a gift, although in your case, it might be something natural to you, given your…inhuman status.”

Totodile cocked his head, pausing ever so briefly. “What are you, anyway?”

The frankness and pure curiosity that bordered innocent threw her off, and it made her anger die down some. Uncertainty replaced it, filled her up and made her duck her gaze. Her hands, which had been clenched at her sides, loosened and she began to fidget with them.

“I don’t…really know. I…I found a journal that had been in my pockets and in it, it has… _things_ written and drawn pictures inside it. A lot of things inside, weird things, but one of the things I think I might be is a…a werewolf.”

“And what, in Arceus’ name, is a werewolf?” He gave her a dubious look now, inching closer. She was apprehensive to share, but she knew he wouldn’t quit. Plus, she didn’t feel like having his teeth sinking into her ankle again.

“…A monster. Something that…eats people. I’d…apparently turn into some sort of…wolf creature on full moons and go hunting. It…it explains the tail, the ears, the…stronger sense of smell, sight, hearing…everything.” A lengthy pause enveloped them. She barely felt the breeze that began to pick up tickling her face and teasing her hair, nor could she feel the sun’s warmth disappearing as it hid behind some clouds above. Totodile kept his eyes locked on hers, not daring to break away this time. Or so it seemed for a long while. His nostrils flared slightly, giving a faint nod toward the road, ducking his gaze.

“We should rest and eat now. We’ll have plenty of time to bicker the rest of the trip.” With that, he moved off the path and toward a spacious grassy knoll just behind a thin copse of trees. “C’mon, hurry up. Don’t make me drag your tail over here like I did dragging it out of that lake.”

She blinked at the sudden shift in his demeanor, at the casualness he’d taken in the news. She eyed his waddling backside a second longer before slowly following after him, hefting her satchel a little higher on her shoulders. Slowly, she went through the motions of getting things set up, even if it was only for some lunch. Cold cuts and some bread were quickly pulled out, along with a small wedge of cheese and some water. She handed out bits of cold cuts as she nibbled on her cheese, eyeing the blue-scaled reptile all the while. There was very little comfort in the way he’d abruptly changed subjects after her confession. It gnawed at her until she was nearly finished with her food and she finally had to say something, _anything_.

Putting down her bottle, she regarded Totodile before asking, “Do you…believe me, or are you just going to sit there quiet-like and pretend everything’s all right and really think that I’m crazy?”

“The second one.”

Lupin scowled. “I’m being serious.”

“So’m I. Do you honestly expect me to believe that story? If you don’t want to tell me, then fine, I’ll play along for the time being. It’s not like I honestly care, even if it is interesting. I told you before, and I’ll tell you again. I’m not here because I’m concerned for you, I’m here because the professor had me come, and because you interest me and not in the happy, fuzzy way either. You are a strange case. You’re neither human nor pokémon…maybe you’re both. That’s why you smell so strange.”

He sounded so matter-of-fact, so sure, so…so _smug_.

Like he knew what it was already and she was too dim to catch on. It infuriated her, but she kept quiet for the time being in spite of herself. Instead, she put her focus on finishing the rest of her food, gathering the trash and packing up everything else. After checking the map, she traced the route they were on with her finger, then poked at the town labeled ‘Florando’. She frowned, measuring the distance and mentally calculating the time it would take to get there.

“It’s almost thirty miles away. There’s no way we can make it by nightfall.”

Totodile shuffled closer, sticking his snout close to the map and eyeballed the route. He snorted.

“We don’t have to. We just need to make it through the forest. Here,” he motioned with a clawed digit to a patch of green. “This is all haunted forest territory. The professor showed me. We just need to find the woman who loans out Hoothoots to trainers.”

“Hoot…hoot?” She echoed, her brow furrowing in puzzlement. If Totodile had the ability to roll his eyes, she was very sure he would have done so. Instead he gave her that look that told her she was being stupid without actually saying it.

“Yes. Very good. _Hoot-hoot_. Powder puff feather balls that look like a gourmet meal with wings.” She saw the hungry gleam in his eyes and she scowled, rolling the map back up.

“Don’t eat the rental pokémon.”

“I would _never_!” He replied in a huff of mock offense. “I would rather catch and eat a wild one. They look so plump; it’s hard not to think of them as food.”

“You do know that the feathers on birds make them look fatter than they really are, right?”

“Apparently, you’ve never seen a Hoothoot,” he said, then motioned with his snout toward the road. “We’ll be cutting it close with the forest. It’s just another few miles down the road. Come on.”

She stared after the waddling blue-and-red backside of the Totodile, his tail scraping along in the dirt behind him. Lupin glanced back behind her, down the road they’d just marched along before their impromptu stop to rest. The sky above was a clear and piercing blue with barely a cloud in sight, while the forest below was deep green and brown and gray with shadow, patches of wild tall grass making up large clearings beyond the road and trees.

Her ears twitched beneath her hat at the sound of Totodile calling to her. With a resigned sigh, she turned on her heel and grudgingly followed after him.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

 


	7. Flicker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Six:  
Flicker**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“What are we doing?”  
“We’re hunting a ghost.”  
“A ghost, exactly. Who _ does _that?”  
“Us.”_ **  
-Dean and Sam, “ _Supernatural_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“You _do_ realize just how close you’re cutting it by leaving this late in the day, don’t you?”

The elderly woman, who had introduced herself as Hagatha, eyed her for a lengthy period of time before turning her shrewd gaze onto the wandering Totodile. He was sniffing the cages filled with quietly resting Hoothoot, their faces hidden beneath their wings as they snoozed. One had been disturbed by the rattling his tail made against one of the cages and was now puffed up, red eyes beadily watching the Totodile. A long, dry hiss emitted from its partially open beak.

“Hey, hey! Get out of there! Stay away, you little scavenger! Please contain your Totodile, I don’t want it disturbing them.”

Lupin swallowed the kneejerk comment that he wasn’t her Totodile, that she was only borrowing him. She didn’t need the headache to explain things to every person she came across for her situation, she reasoned. She could only find it in her to simply obey the decrepit looking old woman, trudging over to the greedy-eyed pokémon and snatch him up into her arms. He wriggled and squealed protests at her, but she growled by his ear to stop it and behave.

She felt his body coil with tension, a soft hiss of warning not unlike the Hoothoot’s from moments before emanate from Totodile. She scowled at the back of his head and shifted him to her shoulder. Grudgingly, he allowed her to do so.

“Googly old hag,” she heard him mutter as he settled himself to drape over her like a scaly scarf.

“Shut it, and let me negotiate with the nice lady, wouldja? She’s been very patient with us and if you eat her Hoothoot, I will skin you alive and give your scales to her as an apology gift.”

The small comment seemed to perk the elderly woman up and she grinned, revealing several gaps where her teeth used to be.

“My, my, your mother must have taught you some good discipline skills and good manners to boot. Buttering me up like that…” She chortled, smacking Lupin’s arm good naturedly before turning back toward the aviary. Lupin offered a meek smile in return, although her stomach flip-flopped on itself and her mouth went dry.

“Yes…she did. She…certainly did. Respect for my elders and whatnot,” she added quietly, following after the hunchbacked woman as she motioned for her to follow.

“I get a lot of traffic from New Bark Town when trainers decide to pass through this forest. The ghosts don’t bother me none, not with all my Hoothoot, but then again, they never bothered me much before either. But I was tired of trainers losing their way or, Legendaries forbid, dying in those woods, so I decided to set up this small business. It’s still small, but humble enough to get me by.”

Hagatha continued down the lane, gazing into the darkened cages with a sharp eye, a frown tugging her lips down. She motioned with a gnarled finger to one of them as they passed it by, “This one used to give me so much trouble. Wouldn’t listen to a trainer at all, except for the pretty girls.” She chuckled slyly at this at a peek of red eyes opening to watch them pass. “But now he’s one of my best navigators, although he’s not the quickest.”

The aforementioned Hoothoot lifted its head from under its wing at its mentioning, peering down at them as they passed with red eyes. It shivered, feathers puffing up and out, before they slowly all began to settle.

“This forest is filled with ghost types. Gastly and Haunter are by far the most common. Occasionally, there are Gengar that roam about, although they don’t stick around for very long and move on. I wouldn’t want to be under their radar, however. It bodes ill for whoever crosses their path wrongly. Spiteful creatures.”

The old woman passed her best navigator on by and paused before the end of the line of cages in the aviary and motioned to a small poof ball of feathers standing on a branch, its face hidden away under its wing as well.

“Here she is. This one. She’ll take you through the quickest. I would feel better if you weren’t in this forest for any longer than you have to be. Especially this late in the day.”

She turned to give Lupin a fierce little stare, lips pressed so tightly together, Lupin thought she’d lose another tooth. “Keep your snaggle-toothed Totodile away from her. I don’t fancy losing one of my birds to his fangs.”

“I wouldn’t want that scrawny little feather ball—”

Lupin abruptly cut off the insult by grabbing his jaws and pinching them shut. “Sorry. He’s a rude little thing. I’m working on that.”

Even if Hagatha couldn’t understand, Lupin didn’t want to be subjected to listen to him. She was kept under the critical gaze of the old woman before she gave a snort and a curt nod. Crooked hands worked at the latch of the cage with surprising dexterity and she coaxed the little Hoothoot awake and out of the cage.

“All I require is three hundred yen for the trip through the forest and a hundred for the care and safety of my Hoothoot. I’m not liable for injuries if you’re attacked while using her, and I don’t want you using her in battle, either. Simply use her Foresight to reveal any ghosts you come across trying to trick you. They’ll usually flee, but if they don’t, use whatever other pokémon you have on you to battle them.”

With the bird in tow, she motioned for Lupin to follow back through the lane of cages and to the main house proper. Lupin glanced at Totodile perched on her shoulder, a frown tugging at her lips. If they were attacked and he was too injured to fight back, then what was she supposed to do? Run back the way she came? Or should she just fight herself? She didn’t even know how to utilize a pokémon in a battle, she realized. The more she learned the less sure she felt of herself that she should continue with a pokémon as a traveling companion.

She kept her worries quiet for the time being, and slipped out of the aviary, with its scent of feather dust and bird droppings and rotted meat from the birds’ daily meals behind. They entered the house proper and crossed through until they exited the front door. Totodile shifted a little more comfortably on her shoulder, watching the old woman and the Hoothoot with his gleaming yellow-red eyes, mouth slightly agape as they stepped outside into the sun.

The woman turned on her heel toward Lupin and thrust her knobby hand out toward the werewolf, fingers crooked and clawed. Her face was grim and etched with deep, weathered lines, but her eyes were sharp and calculating as she regarded Lupin. “I require half the payment upfront. When you reach the other side, you fill the little pouch on Reyna’s foot with the rest.”

She then motioned faintly toward the visible foot clinging to the woman’s thin wrist. A little pouch sat there, just as she said, tied comfortably by a leather thong. Lupin only nodded, before pulling her wallet out of her back pocket to fish out the required payment. When the last of the money was counted off, she was offered the Hoothoot. Lupin reached out and pressed her hand against the Hoothoot’s underbelly. Another leg, hidden beneath the thick down of feathers, appeared suddenly and grasped her hand with surprising firmness, sharp claws digging into her skin. Lupin winced, but was more surprised at the amount of heat emanating from the bird’s scaly foot. Pulling the bird close, the Hoothoot made a soft hiss and Lupin caught wind of “damned reptile”, from the owl pokémon.

The old woman studied Lupin carefully for a few moments more before nodding and giving her pokémon a last pet on the head. Then Hagatha turned toward her front door.

“Reyna is my fastest navigator. She’ll get you through in a jiffy, if you follow her route, that is. I doubt you’d want to stay the night in this forest, so you’d best take off now.”

With a wave over her shoulder, she closed the door and the sound echoed resoundingly in the sudden silence that came pouring in. Then the sound faded away and Lupin was left alone with the Totodile and Hoothoot, the haunted forest looming over them like a sinister, dark beast that beckoned them to come forth.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“You don’t seem to mind being close to her. She isn’t human, you know. Can’t you smell it?”

“I’m right here, you know.”

“I can’t smell that well. I see a lot better. That’s how I hunt. Besides, she doesn’t smell _that_ strange.”

“Still right here.”

“She won’t tell me what she is. She says she’s a monster. I don’t believe that, but she doesn’t smell human. You sure you can’t smell that?”

“I’m still right here! You’re both on either of my shoulders; I can hear everything you two are saying! I’m not deaf!”

Feathers brushed against one cheek, scales on the other, but both were beginning to grate on her nerves. Especially the talking. The literal talking over her head was the worst.

“You don’t believe me? Here. See for yourself.”

The hat atop her head was suddenly yanked off with such force it left one of her ears stinging with the way it pulled her fur the wrong way. She gave a yelp of surprise and indignation. The Hoothoot sitting on her right side screeched into it in just as much a surprise, taking to the air and beating her head with short wings to flutter away. The strong gust knocked Totodile off balance and he scrabbled in vain for purchase. His blunt claws dug into her back and shoulder, tail whipping about before he flopped onto the ground with a shriek of his own, Lupin’s hat still clutched in his jaws.

All three remained rooted to their spots, hearts pounding and breathing hard.

Totodile was the first to collect his wits and turned his crooked snout toward Reyna the Hoothoot and rattled off a laugh at her. “See? I told you. She even has a tail under her coat! It’s fuzzy and twitches a lot.”

“What _is_ she? That’s so weird, she can’t be a human, humans don’t have those! None that I’ve seen, anyway.”

“I’M RIGHT HERE!”

Her voice resonated off into the darkness beyond the trail of the forest, echoing eerily into the air. Lupin barely noticed as she slid her glare from the Hoothoot to the Totodile, who still deemed it appropriate to carry on their conversation right over her head. Totodile laughed once more. Reyna remained silent, feathers puffed, wings drawn up self-consciously as though in plain shame at the act.

“You. You’re going back in the pokéball,” she pointed at Totodile, before turning and doing the same to Reyna. She squawked and puffed up further in shock. “And you. Just do your damned job. Get me through here quickly and then you can go home where you don’t have to see these anymore and worry.”

With that said, she reached down and snatched her hat up from the surprised and gaping jaws of Totodile. Settling it back onto her head with one hand, she started fishing out Totodile’s pokéball with the other, already had it aimed at the little crocodilian when silence crashed down on them. The forest had already been silent before, with its deceptively cheery dappled sunlight and shadowy sinews of tree branches providing shade over the trail. But this, this was a different kind of silence. It felt abrupt, like a door slamming and the way the shadows danced, it felt as though the entire atmosphere had suddenly shifted, with the air growing denser and the light fading quickly. It was noticeable, and sent bone-deep chills crawling down her spine and the chills were worming their way deeper still. Lupin’s breath caught in her chest, suddenly so, when she felt that shiver come over her in a sudden, unwelcome wave. An iron vice gripped them all, she could see the unease in Totodile and the lack of hoots from Reyna behind her only furthered her suspicion. Slowly, Lupin replaced the pokéball back into her coat pocket and slid to a knee, motioning for Totodile. He came just as sluggishly, quietly taking her offer to clamber onto her shoulder without needing further prompting. His body was coiled with tension, ready to spring at a moment’s notice, but she felt he was shaking terribly. Then Lupin turned toward Reyna and she froze.

Behind the Hoothoot, a grotesque face was carved into the wood of the tree and was becoming more defined still. Sinister and appallingly so, the face actually moved. Its jaws widened and was laden with fangs, its eyes gleaming, and shaped into sinisterly gleeful slits and they seemed to glow red from the core. Tree branches began to shake around them, the wood creaking horrendously, as though they were coming to life. It blocked out the light further, throwing them into shadows and darkness. The leafless branches dipped lower, the craggy limbs arching their crooked claws down, reaching for them. Lupin’s tail bristled and her ears pressed further against her head when she began to notice faces were beginning to appear on the other tree trunks. All the jeering expressions were staring at them, she realized, watching with that sinister light and she could feel the miasma of tension thickening by the second. It only seemed to worsen when she picked up on the faint, overlapping whispers and eerie, creepy laughter that echoed around them.

“Reyna…what do you do…when something weird happens in this place? What’s that move your owner taught you?”

It took Reyna a moment to respond, as she began to take in what was happening around them. She shook her tail feathers and ruffled her feathers a bit, looking only slightly perturbed by the sight surrounding them. Then she took to wing and glided silently toward Lupin. The werewolf held out her arm and Reyna landed, graceful as can be and settled comfortably on her perch.

“Foresight.” She simply responded, and her eyes gleamed bright red, before the light projected out and doused the surrounding area in it.

Shadows against the trees stood out starkly in the light, as though their true shapes had been revealed. As the light receded, the shadows against the trees remained, floating in midair unassisted. Hisses and moans of pain and disgruntlement filled the air now, more out of annoyance than anything.

“Dammit, you Hoothoot ruin all the fun! Can’t you let us mess with these trainers more often without interfering from the get-go?” One voice called and shortly was backed by murmurs of agreement.

The shadowy shapes peeled themselves away from the trees, floating in the air still well above their heads. The longer Lupin stared, however, she could see that they weren’t of corporeal shape nor did they seem physically there. They were gaseous and their bodies, even while in one place, seemed ready to shift at a moment’s notice into something less substantial. Amorphous in some moments, nearly-solid in others, Lupin didn’t believe they had real bodies.

Ghost types, the old crone had said, roamed the haunted forest. That was why it was called as such. She could suddenly see why the professor didn’t bother to burden her with the knowledge of this place before her departure; he didn’t want her to worry about running into these creatures any more than she had to. She eyed the gathered shadowy shapes above, could see sinister eyes peering down with wicked mirth in them, furthered only by the gleeful smiles full of fangs flashed their way. Totodile grew tenser, if it was possible, and bared his teeth at them in return, hissing as menacingly as he could.

Instinctively and without really thinking, she brought a hand up to stroke his head in an attempt to soothe him. She didn’t feel afraid, not really, but she wasn’t exactly comfortable, either. They made her fur bristle and her skin pimple with gooseflesh.

Reyna ‘ _hmphed_ ’ from her perch on Lupin’s arm, unperturbed by the floating dark creatures.

“If you don’t want to end up lying around in a puddle of your own gases, then scat! She’s not staying here to be your plaything, so move on and go find someone else to torture.”

“Oh, c’mon, Reyna,” one of the shapes moved closer, a perfect black ball of shadowy gas and wide eyes and big teeth. “We weren’t gonna _hurt_ her. Just _scare_ her a little.”

Chortles and sniggers came from the others. Reyna screeched piercingly and the ball of gas retreated with a wail and a curse. The others backed off, falling silent. Lupin winced, her ears ringing slightly.

“You’ve already scared several trainers, quite literally to death. Why do you think Hagatha rents us to trainers these days?” Another screech resounded from the little owl, who appeared twice her size now because she had puffed all her feathers up. “Now get out of here or you’ll regret it! I’ll get Hagatha’s Noctowls down here if you don’t!”

Lupin waited, as did Totodile. Then slowly, one by one, each of the shadowy creatures began to fade from sight right in front of them. Soon they were all alone, the three of them. Or so it seemed. Lupin felt as though there were eyes upon them still, waiting from the shadows, invisibly lurking. It sent another chill down her spine.

Reyna’s feathers smoothed, but only slightly and she took to the air once more, her wing beats nearly silent even to Lupin’s hearing.

“This way. It’s getting late and we have a ways to go.”

Neither pokémon nor werewolf complained and Lupin took off at a brisk pace, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of being followed and watched.

“I have the same feeling,” Totodile admitted quietly when she said so later in the day. He was still shaking, and she wasn’t sure whether it was from tension or fear or both.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“What is that?”

Reyna paused in a branch above them and hooted curiously, hopping to turn around and looked down. Lupin had paused in her blazing trail along the forest path Reyna was leading her down when something caught her eye. She narrowed her eyes at the sight beyond, dancing little lights in the shadows, almost as though beckoning her to follow and…it was tempting. Very tempting. But something else reared up in warning at the back of her head like a recalcitrant horse. It was tiny and overshadowed by curiosity, however, and she stepped off the path toward the bouncing lights. It was only when Reyna came swooping in and screeching in her face that the trance ended and the temptation was pushed to the back of her head. Totodile hissed in return and Lupin flailed an arm to push the bird away from her face in defense with a strangled cry of surprise.

“Don’t follow the lights!” She shrieked, landing on a fallen tree’s upraised branch, feathers puffy and menacing. “Those are Litwicks. They’ll steal you away from this world if you follow them.”

“Litwicks?”

“More ghost types. The forest used to be filled with just Gastly and Haunter and the occasional Gengar…but ever since other trainers began crossing through every region, they’ve brought their own pokémon from those regions as well. Litwicks aren’t native to Johto, but they sometimes end up in this forest. A high volume area of ghost types will attract other ghost types. Litwicks don’t linger often here, but they’re occasional, alongside others that migrate through. They’ll try to trick you into following them, pretend that they’re leading you out of the forest like a helpful guiding light. Then they’ll steal your life away. That’s why their flames get brighter, because they feed off of the life force of those around them. It’s dangerous to own them as a trainer. They might just kill you if they stayed out longer than necessary.”

Lupin turned to look at the bouncing light again, before she saw that it didn’t look normal, and the same creeping feeling as when the Gastly and Haunter had appeared came back. The hairs on the back of her neck rose, alongside the fur on her tail and made everything stand on end. The chill that had finally fled for the most part returned with a vengeance. The light wasn’t normal, now that Reyna had inputted her word on it. It wasn’t bright and cheery and tempting to follow anymore. It was ominous and dark, despite the light it provided. It was violet-hued, she also noted, such a strange and unusual colour for a flame. Violet like…

Her hand drifted to her back pocket where she kept her wallet stored, where she kept all those pictures she had found stashed away. Violet like…the eyes of the man in her pictures. Her brow furrowed, puzzled at the sudden thought, and the urge to pull it out was strong. But a light nudge from Totodile on her shoulder brought her out of her reverie, the thoughts of pictures and violet coloured eyes and mysterious, smiling faces completely forgotten.

“Keep moving. It’s almost night time and that’s when the ghosts really come out. I don’t want to be stuck in here any longer.”

She nodded, quiet on the fact that he was still shaking, and she was sure it was from fear now. Gently, she raised a hand and gave his back a soothing pet before falling back into step onto the path. He settled somewhat, eyes locked on Reyna as she fluttered above them on silent wings, casting out a blinding light ahead of them and chasing away the shadowy figures that appeared.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The sun was sinking below the horizon when they finally passed through the tree line of the haunted forest and out into the open air. It felt fresher as they stepped into the clearing, less sick, less tempting to let the forest simply take them and never let them go. The chill that had riddled Lupin’s spine was slowly easing away with the faintest of tingles and the shaking tension that plagued Totodile as he rode along on her shoulder was as well. He practically slumped against her now, too exhausted to pass along quips with Reyna as she came to perch on Lupin’s outstretched arm when coaxed over.

She slipped her wallet back out for the second time that day and placed the last of Hagatha’s payment into the little pouch strapped to Reyna’s ankle. With a nod of approval, the Hoothoot thanked Lupin before taking off again, this time over the trees of the forest.

Lupin watched until the owl pokémon was gone before turning to look down the road.

“Do you…want to pitch up camp here or would you rather go down a ways?”

“Do you have to ask?” He grumbled moodily back, glowering at her with his one visible eye. Lupin sighed, boots scuffling as she took to the road again, although it didn’t escape her notice how swollen the moon looked.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	8. Howl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Seven: Howl**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_If you could only see the beast you've made of me I held it in but now it seems you've set it running free The saints can't help me now, the ropes have been unbound I hunt for you with bloody feet across the hallowed ground_ **-“ _Howl_ ” by Florence & The Machine ** **OoOoOoOoOoO**

It was quiet and dark when he awoke. He hadn’t been expecting that ride to be such a doozy, but then again, he hadn’t really expected to travel from one world to the next in the first place, either. The first impression he interpreted were sounds and smells, split seconds before sight kicked in and everything was laid out before him, dark or not. Superb night vision had its advantages. Thick, woody scents assaulted his nose, his mind automatically pinpointing his location in a forest of sorts. The heavy musk of animals from their constant traffic through the area, and even the near-constant scent marks of humans pushing through came to him. Things were already categorizing as vital, not important, and some of slight interest but not immediately so. It only took a few moments to gather his bearings before he began prioritizing what needed to be done.

...if only he could catch her scent.

That would be nice a nice, convenient start. He was _supposed_ to be in the same place she’d been dumped so unceremoniously, after all, but then again, he didn’t trust everything that had been planned. Not completely.

He turned his attention to the task, eyeing his surrounding, noting the dense growth of the woods, perfect for wild animals to hunt, but clear enough to traverse for people. He could smell everything carried on the wind or in the vicinity with growing clarity and none of it registered as immediately vital to him. The one scent he wanted to find, he could already tell it wasn’t here, that she hadn’t come through here. That much, he could already articulate from the get go and it irked him.

He wished he’d gone with her on that hunt instead of letting her go alone, then maybe…just maybe, none of this would have happened. It was not for the first time the thought has crossed his mind, and it wouldn’t be the last, not until he found her. “Gone, but not dead,” had been his first clue that there was hope, and it had been the one saving grace that kept him from snapping the neck of the monster who had done all of this. It didn’t take long after before the bastard had finally cracked, finally conceded to send him to the unknown world he’d so contemptuously tossed his mate into. Flinging unwitting victims into a portal seemed to be this particular nasty beastie’s not-so-guilty pleasure.

Too long, he’d waited _too long_ to start looking and he was feeling an inkling of regret gnaw away at his gut. He knew she could take care of herself, fine and dandy, but there were times he worried more than usual, especially during long periods of no contact. Or when she came home, smelling of her own blood, more saturated than usual, and her mood plateaued in the realm of melancholy from whatever horror show freak she’d dedicated herself to eradicating. And for all he knew, this place could have been a veritable wasteland with little to no chances of survival that she’d been flung into because of the latest mishap. Looking at it now, he doubted it, but he was still wary and on alert.

Pausing to give the sky a glance, he stiffened momentarily at the sight of a full moon that sat in the black sky like a huge coin, silvery-blue and bright. His shoulders dropped, a fraction of an inch or so. The full moon…that would mean she’d be out in her fur, hunting, or already eating her kill, or perhaps even resting. It was not his time to shift, his schedule was slightly off from hers, but still…a chill rushed down his spine at the sudden memories of loping in his fur alongside her, and he felt a twinge of regret stir inside him. He should never have let her go alone, not this time, he knew he should have listened to his gut instinct, but no. He let her go alone, like he’s done hundreds of times before, trusting she’d be all right, trusting she’d come back.

Sudden movement halted his thoughts, made him tense and he waited, on edge, eyes sweeping over toward the direction it came from. Something small and quick darted between one shrub to another, whisked around to the backside of a thick tree trunk and then…nothing. A few seconds passed. Then a furry snout came poking out, twitching and sniffing, followed by a squashed little face, with a waddling body trailing behind it. He could already see mismatched, zig-zag patterns decorating its fur. It looked like a cross between a dog and a raccoon, with a black mask over its liquid brown eyes. Its fur was coarse and in spike-like tufts and coloured in creams and light browns.

He stared, taken aback, before he let out a gush of air that he hadn’t known he’d been holding until it puffed into a relieved laugh. The noise startled the creature and it jumped in the air before turning tail as soon as its feet hit the ground, darting back the way it had come.

Oh, _relief_. It felt so good to have that strain of worry and anxiety that had been building up like a festering sickness suddenly deflate and ease away. He quickly felt less apprehension for her, and realized she could have been sent somewhere, anywhere far worse than this place. She could have been sent to somewhere so much worse than this world. Yet, she was here, where he knew the creatures inhabiting this place had been nothing but fantastical monsters that occupied the imagination and gaming of children where he was from.

The minute Alastor found Lupin, he was going to hold her close and not her go for a good long while. And then he was going to smack her upside the head for worrying him and for getting herself in such a predicament in the first place.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Why aren’t we headed into town?”

Lupin poked at the fire, stoking and adjusting a log with a thick stick. Its tip was a bright, cherry red and the embers beneath glowed red hot, bright and cheery as the fire made the wood crackle and pop. Satisfied, she put the stick down and turned her attention to the simmering pot hanging on its pole above the fire, ladling at the stew inside. It was thick and hearty, and especially very meaty, laden with Tauros meat she’d bought in Florando. With a pinch of salt and pepper and some herbs, it was very enticing and easy on the nose. Even Totodile briefly forgot his own question at the scent for a few seconds before he shook his head and repeated it more sternly.

“We can get way better chow down in the Pokémon Center in town. Like the chow we _should_ have gotten when we stopped in Florando, but nooooo…” He added with a beady glare. He grumbled a bit more as he trudged around the campfire toward her when she ignored him. She continued stirring, lifting her sleeve out of reach when he made to snap at it. He snarled, back plates flaring before he scampered around her. A few seconds passed before she felt her tail singing with pain. She whirled, ignoring the painful twinge her back made at the slight contortion as she stared, aghast at the sight. Totodile had latched his jaws around her tail and try as she might to pull it away, he stubbornly hung on.

She made a swipe at him, cringing every time a jolt of pain raced up from her tail bone, along her spine, and to the back of her skull. He ducked, giving it another harsh tug and she let out a strangled half-snarl, half-cry.

“Get off, get off!”

“Not until we go into town!” He growled back, his mouth muffled by her fur.

“We _can’t_ , not tonight all right, just—get the fuck _off_ of me!”

She finally managed a hit, but it was a glancing one. He released at last, skittering across the ground on all fours before rearing back to his hind legs on the other side of the campfire. His eyes glittered in the fire light, his scales catching in the sunset’s dying rays that still barely peeked over treetops. Lupin was smoothing her tail over gingerly, the pain already receding. She had her eyes locked on Totodile, however, her hackles raised and a growl building in her chest.

“We’re on a tight schedule, in case you forgot. We’re not going to dally around out in the woods just because you don’t want people to see your furry little butt.”

“Look, tonight isn’t a good night, but we can go down tomorrow. We’ll even be in Cherrygrove by then and we’ll be right on schedule—”

“Why can’t we go tonight? We’re right there. And don’t start with that full moon tale again. You’re not some shapeshifting monster, you’re a liar with a weird tail and fuzzy ears trying to pass yourself off as human. It’s pathetic, you barely put any effort into hiding anything.” He snorted derisively at her, nostrils flaring and yellow-red eyes narrowing to mere slits.

Lupin didn’t bother with the stare down game. Instead, she whipped out his pokéball and recalled him. The split-second look of surprise on his face before he disappeared in a flash of light would have been a priceless reward for everything he’s done up to this point to her. It would have given her some satisfaction, some relief, at not having to put up with his smug attitude and know-it-all air of a lab-raised pokémon. But it didn’t. It left her feeling a white-hot rage building knots in her chest, twisting over on itself so tightly, it was spreading painfully down to her limbs, her stomach, her very core.

It took her a very long minute to realize that the pain really was real and that it wasn’t imagined. It wove over itself, tighter and tighter, making it hard to breathe and she struggled to keep her limbs from shaking but to no avail. She dropped the pokéball, and turned away before stumbling to her hands and knees. Lifting her head, she hurriedly scanned the sky. It was nearly dark, the sky that had been bleeding its last dredges of daylight before disappearing to the cooler scheme of night. She searched for the moon, but couldn’t find it, not with the trees blocking the horizon. Another twist and brief stab of agony in her chest and gut had her tensing up again and she twisted away further from the campfire.

She heard, rather than felt, something rip and her ears swiveled in its direction long before the idea to search with her eyes came to mind. When it did, she craned her neck, trying to minimize the movements to keep her head to stop aching so much, but the pain took a brief backseat. She could feel her arms beginning to bulge and her frame expanding out, and fur was bristling out of flesh. Rough, dark patches began covering the tips of her fingers and the palm of her hand like thick black calluses. Her finger nails—already tipped with sharp, thick points—thickened further, darkened, lengthened into curving hooks. And everything else just seemed to grow and bulge and _shift_.

Well, everything except her clothes. The last second idea to strip off her long coat and kick her boots off came in a rush and she fumbled with inarticulate hands to yank the laces off and just in time. She heard and felt the crunch and crack of bones and briefly wondered, horrified, if her body was _breaking_ itself before she realized it was physically readjusting, rearranging.

Her brief stint of curiosity was thrown on the backburner as well as she felt everything stretching, rippling, _changing_. Clear thoughts scattered at the faint noise of ripping, tearing, screaming, roaring—

…was that… _her_ making that horrible noise?

Everything seemed clouded now, the pain peaking somewhere between agonizing and sweet, unbearable and euphoric. It hurt, it really did, especially her face as it began to swell and lengthen, but there was a blissful release once everything began to settle down and ease itself into place. She had tried to fight it at first, but when she had relaxed, it came easier and was less painful to endure. The transition wasn’t smooth, even when she stopped tensing up, but it was smoother than resisting completely.

She lay on the ground when everything seemed to have finally settled and stopped, panting heavily, her tongue lolling. Air gushed out of her lungs and was sucked back in greedily while her heart pounded away in her chest. It soon began to slow, as did her pulse. The pain from before was a faint throb, and was replaced by a tingle, and that too was beginning to ebb away. With a soft grunt, she pushed herself up. Her vision swam only for the briefest of moments before she steadied herself and she was up on her feet. She swayed, somewhat off balance, then stilled and realized almost immediately: _I’m taller._

She snorted, glancing down. Everything was covered in fur, she realized, except for all the scarred areas on her body, like the burn marks on her wrists or the claw marks on her abdomen. She saw torn clothing around her and let out a soft whimper, although she noted her boots and coat were in relatively good condition. Her boot laces were slightly frayed from where her claws had torn at them, but she could get them replaced in Cherrygrove, she reasoned.

Diverting her attention away from the destroyed clothing articles, she breathed in deep and a heady rush of different scents came rushing in and flying through her head. The campfire was the strongest, muscling in to the forefront of her mind. Then the wafting scent of her cooking dinner that still simmered over the campfire caught her attention. She had hoped to eat something beforehand, hoping to quell most of her hunger and perhaps stay in one spot instead of wandering away. Other scents—a myriad of animal musk and plant fragrances; fresh water from a stream or creek; humans and pokémon alike—came sailing on through the filter next, and she immediately categorized them as insignificant and not an immediate danger to her at the moment. She moved heavy paws forward, shuffling slowly toward the campfire.

The heat was strong, but it was dying. No matter. She had no need for fire tonight, not when she was covered in thick, but soft fur. The wind was picking up, tickling her nose and bringing on fresher scents. She inhaled again and shuddered. Nothing of interest, she noted again. Nothing of importance, at least not yet. Turning back to the fire, she reached for the pot and took it off the pole, her mouth salivating at the scent of cooking meat. The pads on the tips of her hand-like paws gripped it well and she brought it down to the ground, sniffing hungrily. It was hot as she stuck her snout closer and gave the broth a quick lap, yet it was good.

But, she realized, not good enough. She wanted something hot, yes, but she craved hot blood, fresh from a kill. She gave the broth a few more laps, and even managed to scoop up some of the cooked Tauros meat and some of the veggies floating around in the stew, although it didn’t quite satisfy her craving. Should she leave? She could satiate her hunger then. But what if someone saw her? One instinct gave the solution to not get caught. Another said to not leave witnesses. Another alternative told her to stay put and wait out the night. She decided to stay for the time and finish off the food in the pot as she mulled over what she wanted to do, not wanting to waste it since she’d cooked it earlier. She found herself still hungry and not very satisfied with the cooked meat like she thought she would be. Her stomach flip flopped in on itself, demanding to be filled and she whined pitifully at the torn decision to stay and go. Finally she pushed back up to her feet, still feeling unsure of how well she could move when her thoughts—already becoming muddled and less sensible, unlike the way they were when she wasn’t in her fur—came to a standstill.

A round object rolled around on the ground when her paw struck it, the shiny surface gleaming orange and red and yellow in the dying firelight. She dropped back down on all fours, sniffing at it carefully. She nudged it once with her nose, then again, then a third time, only harder. It rolled across the ground, bounced and swerved its path and bumped against her satchel. It remained still for a moment before it split in half. Blinding light leapt from its open maw and she let out a surprised bellow, teeth bared and black lips peeled back in warning as the light took shape and solidified. The dry musk of a reptile filled the air. The renewed scent mingled with its earlier predecessor. Blue scales gleamed in the fire, and yellow-red eyes stared around, long crooked snout gaping in a hiss. He paused at the sight of her and opened his mouth wider, hissed louder and a small, squeaking growl emanated from deep in his throat as he scuttled backward away from her.

Her lips pulled back down slightly, covering most of her teeth as she tilted her head to the side.

Totodile, she remembered. He seemed so much…smaller now. She reached out to bat a paw at him experimentally. He reacted instantly, snapping his jaws at her paw while his tail swerved in the air and smacked the ground as a counterbalance.

“K-keep away! I mean it!” He warned with another growl, giving the camp a once over when she didn’t press forward. He froze at the sight of the torn clothing, the cast aside boots and uttered quietly, “Where is she?”

She cocked her head to the other side. Was that…fear she heard in his voice? Even if it wasn’t, she could certainly smell it, and it was coming off of the pokémon in waves. Faintly, she felt the urge to nuzzle him, to comfort him, to tell him she was all right, just different. She was wolf. Not human. Could she speak if she tried? She resolved to keep silent after a moment’s consideration. Her voice probably wouldn’t sound the same even if she could. Instead, she turned away with a groan. He wouldn’t understand. He wouldn’t believe her, not until the morning when he saw her change shape. He could stay in camp for now. She was still hungry and sitting her on her rump wasn’t going to fill her belly.

“Hey! Hey, get back here—what did you do to the girl I was with, where is she?”

Girl? She wasn’t a girl. Girls were little and tiny and helpless. She was strong and big and ran when the moon was full, like it was tonight. She hunted on fleet paws and could crunch bones with her jaws. She wasn’t just some girl, she was a werewolf.

Wait, where did she see that again? How did she know? It was turning fuzzy now, and the pull of the forest was strong. The urge to hunt was a temptation she couldn’t resist much longer and she was still so very hungry. But for what, she had to decide and quickly; she was brimming with energy that demanded to be spent tracking, hunting, killing. She wanted hot blood to gush in her mouth and slide down her throat, to take into her jaws a heart still pumping and beating. She wanted to hunt and this little blue reptile’s constant nattering was beginning to annoy her. Not enough to kill him, of course. He wouldn’t make much of a meal, and he was…friend? Ally? It was starting to blur, but something rang in her head to not eat the little blue reptile on principle. And a reason that she couldn’t quite recall at the moment, one that stayed her jaws. Someone would be mad if she did eat him and she couldn’t quite figure their face out at the moment. She could remember a vague scent mark, however, that clung to his reptilian hide. A human male, she recalled, and that was all she could remember for the time being. She’d remember in the morning, she reasoned.

She turned her head to snarl a warning, but was met instead with icy water blasting in her face. It got in her nostrils, her mouth, choked her throat and she instinctively turned her head away, hacking and coughing, gushing air out of her nose as best she could. Her throat felt ragged and raw, painful to breath for a few seconds.

“Answer me! Where is the girl I was with, what did you do to her?”

She turned at the voice and opened her jaws to respond in kind and instead a guttural roar came pouring out. It shook the very air, rattled the bones and gave her a rush. Not to mention, it shut up the little blue reptile up quite impressively. He stared with those yellow-red eyes, flabbergasted and shaking, excreting a sudden assault of _fear angry scared_ from every scale on his body.

Why didn’t he use that nose of his to sniff her out? Was he suddenly blind to her scent mark? He knew her, she was sure of this, but he was acting so blind right now. It was almost embarrassing.

They stared one another down for several long moments, her fur bristling and his back plates flaring, either out of fear or an attempt to look brave and big or maybe it was all of those. She saw his gaze sliding all over her form, untrusting and wary, before they settled on her snout. The tension in his body slowly eked out and recognition slowly filtered through. His jaws worked open and closed with soft _clacks_ , but no words came forth.

She took that as a cue that he understood at last and could be left alone. She snorted at him, letting her own body to relax before turning on her heel to trot away on, first on all fours, before loping up on her back paws. She heard Totodile calling back for her, heard his last words entreating her to return, moments before his voice was lost to the music of the forest spread out before her. They barely registered, however, as she opened her jaws and let out a blood curdling howl, shaking the very trees to their roots.

Time to hunt.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The air at night wasn’t entirely too cold for him, even when he was outside. Not during this season and area of Johto, it was quite balmy and comfy. He simply liked the warmth others provided because it was easier than always moving around and flopping about and getting comfortable and worrying about poking himself against a nest-mate’s spikes and scales. It had been nice living at the professor’s lab, especially. Chikorita and Cyndaquil were both warm sources and they always slept in a pile together, so he was never without comfort. Not that being out in the open was any more uncomfortable, but tonight…

Tonight, however, he felt chilled to his bones. Utterly terrified, and too frozen to move and attempt to keep the fire going. It had slowly died down to bleak embers and then to ash right before dawn, but he dared not move from his spot. Even when his stomach began to grumble with hunger pangs, he didn’t dare move toward the overturned pot, where he could smell remnants of cooked food and it smelled so _good_ it made his mouth water in spite of himself. His mind kept reeling back to the moments before being recalled to his pokéball, of the woman he’d come to know for the past few weeks, to the monster that had replaced her when he was released. Or at least, the woman he assumed he had known. A stranger with a strange secret, and now he knew she hadn’t been lying to him, like he had believed.

She’d changed. _Changed_ from a human shape to…to _something_ _else_. It was no pokémon he was familiar with, no creature he knew of. She may have recalled him, perhaps only moments before it had happened, but he knew it was her. She’d changed into something that seemed like a storybook monster that humans and pokémon alike told of to scare one another. Her scent was neither human nor pokémon, but perhaps a mix of both, and that was why it always smelled so odd. That was what he told himself since the beginning, when he’d seen what she was, there wasn’t any way. This was different, this was something entirely else, something in its own league. She perhaps could have passed as a pokémon, but there was something else that just rang klaxons in his head, that told him otherwise. She had smelled roughly the same, except for a deeper animal aroma, more pronounced now that she was in her fur, but he hadn’t wanted to believe it at first. After he’d seen the scar on that long snout, the very same that he had grown used to seeing on a human face, it was too hard to ignore the facts that it was _her_.

It was Lupin, but at the same time, it was not Lupin. She really was a monster in a human shape.

She had called herself a werewolf. A monster in human skin that changed on the full moon, or so she claimed from that book of hers, that journal she always had her nose buried in. It was the same one the professor had found on her when they’d dragged her out of the lake. She kept it on her at all times, read through it constantly whenever they had a chance to rest, always staring, reading, muttering to herself. She didn’t think he noticed, but he did, he always did. He found it annoying at times. If she hadn’t found anything about herself in it by now, she probably never would.

Yet she had treated everything in it like truth, however tentatively she believed in it, but he had scoffed and disregarded it, and even forgotten for the most part. He couldn’t now, not with the evidence that had surely stood before him last night. She had been covered from head to toe in fur with a lupine face and…and scars. So many scars. Scars he had never seen before that covered her arms, her belly, her legs, her back…

He had only ever seen the one on her face.

But it had been _Lupin_ , he had no doubts in his mind now. It was her, whether he liked it or not. Her form was different, but her scent…no, he couldn’t have mistaken it even if he wanted to. And oh, he wanted nothing more than to forget the image burned into his mind. He had wanted to believe some strange pokémon had entered camp and flung her away, but after hearing her speak about the monsters in her book, it was hard to.

Scars and fur aside, she was huge. Not as large as his mother and father, mind, but still big compared to him and it reminded him just how small he was. Lean and tall, she was coated in thick fur and her eyes had glittered gold in the bright firelight, both wild and civilized, intelligent yet savage, and when she had roared, it scared him. Her sopping wet fur against the glimmer of white fangs peeking beneath black gums had him regretting spraying her in the face almost at once. Especially with the way the red in her fur had looked chillingly like blood, dark and dripping and foreboding.

But as soon as he calmed, so had she, and then she was gone, prancing off into the forest without a second glance back at him. Then that blood-curdling howl had ripped through the fleeting quiet interlude after her departure. It left the forest coldly silent, as though everything, including the wind, was holding its breath, waiting for the dark predator to move on. Even after that, the chorus of the woods refused to sing for the longest time. The howl had left him stiff and frozen to his spot, curled beside the fire, but even with it burning half the night, he was still cold. He dared not sleep, afraid she’d come back, forgetting who he was and deciding she wanted a midnight snack after all. His eyelids were drooping by the time dawn came rolling through. Sleepy and rosy-coloured, the sun peeped through fog and snippets of clouds that dotted the horizon. The forest, after Lupin’s impromptu departure, had at last resumed its nightly chorus, although it seemed an eternity had passed before the first chirrups stirred the rest into gear. But now as the nocturnal insects were settling, the morning birds were chirruping away, completely at peace.

He shivered, suddenly wishing for the fire to be borne again and he moved for the first time in hours, staring forlornly at the ashes in the dugout pit. It was at these times he wished he was a fire pokémon. Not that he couldn’t survive this temperature, but still…a fire was nice. He didn’t have the paws to make it and neither the heart-fire. Humans—and Lupin, by extension, he supposed—had clever paws and were almost as quick to make it.

The Totodile stiffened again when he heard the uncoordinated scuffle of movement approaching, slowly but surely and he turned his head to view where it was coming from. At first, he considered it might be other trainers. Or poachers. Pokémon poachers tended to roam forests, collecting whatever they could get their hands on, whether they be wild or trained pokémon. Thieves. He hissed in warning, arching his back and preparing to dash for cover or perhaps ready a water gun attack or maybe even both.

But then the wind changed and he relaxed, surprised, not quite believing his nose before his eyes confirmed what he’d smelt. Lupin was ambling her way back, albeit in a plodding manner. Before long, she stumbled into the small clearing where she’d made camp last night. He hissed again, not sure whether or not he should run or stay. Instinct told him to stand his ground, it was his duty as a pokémon readying itself as a starter for a potential trainer, to stay and fight and train. But something else clamored for him to run to safety.

Now he understood why Chikorita and Cyndaquil feared her so much. She really was different.

She stumbled to her knees and sat there for a few belated seconds, not moving any further from her spot. She was naked, from head to toe, and no trace of her fur was to be found except for her tail and her ears. They all slumped low; ears pinned to her head in a listless fashion, her tail flat and unmoving on the ground. Lupin swayed, and he saw the exhaustion lining her face, but there was also a kind of glow to her, one that praised conclusion and succession of a sort.

He stared, still tottering on the line of stay or go, when her mismatched eyes finally drifted over him. She stared for a long time, as though not completely registering who he was or where she was for that matter before recognition finally kicked in. Her lips pursed and her brow furrowed and she looked away at the encampment, and she blinked very slowly before wordlessly standing on wobbly legs to scoot toward her pack.

“Morning,” she finally muttered to him, the first word of greeting she offered as she laboriously began unpacking clean clothes from the confines of the satchel. She started to dress just as slowly, her energy waning and he immediately wondered just how was she going to make it to Cherrygrove in such a heinous condition. Her hair was a mess, her body was streaked with dirt and she looked ready to collapse.

He carefully waddled closer, afraid of making any sudden movements lest she leap at him with suddenly renewed vigor, and with her other face in place instead of the one he’d come to know.

“We should…be in a Cherrygrove in a few hours,” she continued, although it seemed more for her benefit than his own as she said this, as though she was reminding herself aloud.

“Yes,” he agreed. “If you can make it in a few hours.”

“I can…just…tired. I might sleep when I get there. If that’s okay?”

He stared for a moment longer, then dipped his snout in a single nod. “Yes. You can,” he agreed once more. He paused, then said, “Do you…remember anything from last night?”

“The moon,” she said wistfully and she paused in her movements, going still and quiet, while her eyes grew distant and cloudy with faint nostalgia. “So big and round and…calling me. Blood. I remember…blood. I could smell it. Taste it. Singing, there was…singing. The moon was singing and my blood sang back and I called…called out to it with my voice.”

She grew quiet, her shoulders slowly falling and the shirt in her hand lay forgotten as she stared back out into the forest, like she was back there once again. Totodile stared, watching, in awe and wonder, wondering briefly what she had truly experienced and how it would feel to be a feral pokémon running as free as she seemed to have done last night. Then he remembered himself and shook all thoughts from his head. No, he was a trainer’s pokémon, not some wild beast roaming the forest. He didn’t want to know what it was like to sluice through a wild pokémon’s river, to worry about when or where his next meal would be, or to wander the wild aimlessly about, stuck to just one territory. He wanted to roam beside a trainer in the backwoods, yes, but that was different. Traveling with a trainer meant going _everywhere_.

He stared at Lupin for a moment longer.

But not with this one, he decided.

Never again with this woman. After this, she was on her own, just the way she had originally wanted. He fleetingly wondered if it was too late to trek back to the professor’s lab.

He shuffled forward, rising to his back legs and stooped to pick up her shirt, jerking it in the air.

“Here. C’mon. Dress yourself. We’re wasting time.”

The nostalgia in her eyes vanished in an instant and she looked back at him, as though for the first time.

“Morning,” she greeted tiredly and he sighed.

It was going to be a long day, he could feel it in his scales.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

 


	9. Recover

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of howPokémonlook in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Eight:  
Recover**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Any kid will run any errand for you, if you ask at bedtime._ **  
-Red Skelton**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The time left spent on the road to Mr. Pokémon’s home dwindled to a hazy blur after the night of the full moon. Reserved and quiet, neither of them spoke much except for when necessary, and even then, there was the strain of civility. Neither of them wanted to speak of that night. Lupin mainly had a lack of understanding and wanted to mull over it, although she barely remembered it all. Or rather, it wasn’t that she _didn’t_ remember, it was simply easier to recall the memories by sensory rather than by visual memory alone. She could recall things easier if she focused on the taste, touch, smell, and sound of things more so than she could by the sight of it all alone. There was more to it than just the sights and sounds, there was the smells and touches, and the preternatural sixth sense that lingered beneath the surface, a sense that had lain dormant until the full moon deemed it necessary to awaken. If she remained only absorbed by the sight of it all, she might as well have blinded herself to everything else and it made for a dull retelling.

_Everything_ was important.

And Totodile, well…he found himself in the same apprehensive state that he had scoffed at the others for indulging in back at the lab. He had thought her amusing and intriguing to a point, interesting only for her scent alone. Now, however, he saw it more clearly with just how _otherworldly_ she was and it wasn’t in an endearing sense either. He could only envision that other face superimposed over the one he saw daily: there was wildfire in those bright golden eyes that boasted of more intelligence and understanding than should be allowed. The irony made him want to scoff when he thought of the many intellectual pokémon with the same wild eyes he’s seen come and go. He felt it was an unfair assessment to enforce on her shoulders, but he couldn’t help it.

She was an anomaly that did not belong, a strangeness that he wanted to get away from and yet…

He looked at her now as they trudged the last leg of their journey toward their destination, their halfway point, and felt that nagging tug at his conscious again. She was alone. She was alone and unsure and she may be a grown woman, but she still looked so lost, like a child, even when she was trying not to actually look it. Yet he’s seen the way she’s stared at pokémon they have come across with eyes that had a bemused light in them, like she was seeing them for the first time in her life. It was the same light he had seen in them when she first laid eyes on him, Chikorita, and Cyndaquil—boggled and unsure of what to make of them all. No recognition, no familiarity, nothing.

He snorted as he waddled beside her.

_Tough luck,_ he reasoned, squashing any sympathy he had for her. When this job was over, and they were back at the lab, he would be picked by a trainer—a _licensed_ trainer—and he would travel with them, side-by-side, like he was meant to do. It was what he had been _bred_ to do. Being a lab pokémon was fine for a time, but he ached to fight, to battle, to rage against an opponent like his parents had once done in their primes, and their parents before them, and so on and so forth. He did not want to be left behind and waste his days being poked and prodded at for the rest of his life. The other two seemed content with that lifestyle, but not him. A water pokémon he may be, but he had a fire and a drive that the other two seemed to lack.

And looking back on her now, Lupin seemed content to sit and wait for her answers, to laze about the lab like that assistant of Professor Elm’s. She had no drive to find answers, to chase them down until she caught them, except when they were seemingly sitting in front of her and within reach. She talks and talks and _talks_ about it, and broods even more, but he’s heard only words and saw little action. If he were to ever be in her position, he would have scoured the world and over if he had ever been separated from his nest-mates or trainer, and he wouldn’t have stopped until he found them. She spoke but did nothing. She thought on it, but she has yet to put plans—if she even had any—into action. It wouldn’t surprise him if her nest-mates weren’t even looking for her and were happily content to be indefinitely away from her.

Lazy mammals.

“Hey,” she said, her words breaking through his thoughts like a shaft of light in the darkness, piercing and sudden in the quietness. He gave her a glance. He has stopped asking her for rides atop her shoulders and satchel since that night. “Is…is everything okay? You’ve been quiet for the last few days.”

_No, everything is not fine. You really are a monster._

He was still having trouble accepting what he knew to be the truth. She had changed. Perhaps not right before his eyes, but the glaring evidence had been hard to ignore. That scar on her face, and the one on that snarling beast’s snout had been one and the same.

“I’m fine. I just want to get this done and get back to the lab.”

_Back where I can happily ignore you and you can ignore me like before, and you can brood in your room and I can wait for my real trainer to take me on our journey together._

“Are you sure?”

So unsure, so worried, so…so unconvinced. So what? Her opinion hadn’t mattered, not since day one and certainly not now. The only opinions he cared about, for now, were Professor Elm’s and his soon-to-be-trainer’s. Whoever they were and whenever they showed up, that is.

_I never should have gone with you. You didn’t need me after all, you were right all along; you should have done this alone. You would have liked that, you wanted to take me back. I should have just let you._

“Yes.”

She still looked skeptical, but she fell silent and didn’t press the issue. He continued the unassuming façade he had maintained a majority of the trip, but this time without the smart quips like before. He could only see that other face every time he looked at her. He didn’t want to do that anymore. It made his blood turn to ice and his heart quicken in apprehension. Every instinct rang klaxons in his skull, telling him to turn tail and head the other way with every whiff of her scent he caught.

_You never needed a mediator or a pokémon to fight or protect you. You never really needed any pokémon because you could have torn them apart with your teeth and claws. You really_ can _take care of yourself. I’ll be glad if you leave before I do._

She grew quiet after a time, once more slipping back into her gloomy silence, thinking whatever thoughts that came across her mind. They were steeped in the silence of the afternoon as they drew closer to their destination. He was glad this was nearly over.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Graham “Mr. Pokémon” Wardson was an excited sort of fellow, if that could be allowed to be the shortest descriptor to label the man on sight. He was of average height and build, donning a sensible attire of khaki pants, button down blue shirt, and a trilby hat. As soon as he laid eyes on his visitor, he was grinning from ear to ear behind his neatly trimmed beard, a wide strip of teeth gleaming and puffed out a hearty laugh. He immediately ushered in Lupin and Totodile still beaming that wide smile at her, shaking her hand and clapping her shoulder and leading her inside with barely an introduction.

“I already know who you are; Professor Elm shot me an email a few days ago, saying you’d be by around this time! You’re Lupin, his new junior assistant!”

She smiled, albeit nervously and a mite embarrassed, but nodded all the same, giving Totodile a sparing glance at her side. Mr. Pokémon led them through the threshold, a cozy den with plush couches and loveseats, and a few little desks and side tables sat in the squashed room. A silent, black-screened television was mounted on the wall above a fireplace, but her impression of the room was fleeting as he led her through an open doorway into another room. Totodile waddled after the two, glancing at the human household with all the interest he could muster, which wasn’t very much. All he wanted to do was lay down and rest his tired paws. They were led to a small dining room, and the older man motioned toward a table sitting between a bookshelf crammed with books of all sizes, shapes, colours, and a glass-covered cabinet that housed various bits, bobbles, pieces and objects of interest and strangeness alike. Side tables were also similarly covered in odd knickknacks, mostly pokémon-themed paraphernalia, Lupin noticed. In fact, every available surface was sprawling with odd artifacts.

Moments after she took in the scenery of the room, she noticed that she wasn’t the only guest that Mr. Pokémon had. Another man was there, sipping from a teacup, but at the blustering excitement Mr. Pokémon was exuding, he turned to see what all the fuss was about. Totodile snorted.

“Ah, I’m so sorry, where are my manners? This is Professor Oak. Professor Oak, this is Lupin, Professor Elm’s new junior assistant down at the lab in New Bark Town. She’s come to whisk away that little mystery I was telling you about earlier.”

“Not much of a mystery if we already know what it is,” the professor noted dryly with a faint smile. He stood, laying his teacup back on its saucer and crossed the room to meet them halfway, holding a hand out to Lupin. “It’s good to meet you. I’ve heard a few things from Professor Elm about you. My condolences. I hope that you’re able to find what you’re looking for.”

Awkwardly, Lupin shook his hand, feeling a little upset that her condition was being advertised beyond the people she already knew. She said nothing, however, and only nodded to the man, eyeing him studiously. He was tall, broad-shouldered, sporting a casual attire of loafers, khaki slacks and a collared shirt beneath a white lab coat. His hair was graying in most areas and his face, while kindly, had a series of hard lines etching across it. His skin was darkly tanned, suggesting he did as much outside work as he did inside. The hard lines were softened, however, by the smile he sported, and crow’s feet formed to crinkle at the edges of his eyes, making them flash with mirth as he regarded her just as carefully. She felt a shiver when his eyes traced the scar on her face, but he said nothing about it, so she did the same.

“Thank you…Professor Oak, was it?”

_Tree names. Elm. Oak. Is this a theme? Is there a Birch in the family there, somewhere?_

The amusing thought passed along fairly quickly as she watched, from the corner of her eyes, Mr. Pokémon scuffle about before he exited the room completely, leaving her alone with the elderly gentleman. Dropping her hand and clearing her throat, she shouldered her pack into a more comfortable position. As though remembering himself, Professor Oak motioned to the table.

“You can sit and relax if you’d like, I’m sure you and your companion there would welcome the rest?” He smiled again, glancing down at the blue-scaled reptile. “Ah, a Totodile. Wonderful choice you made.”

“Really wasn’t mine,” Lupin said, taking up his offer to rest her feet. Plopping into one of the empty chairs, she sighed, visibly relaxing and carefully dislodging the satchel from her shoulders. “I was…coerced into taking him. I didn’t exactly have a team when…when they found me.”

A perplexed and questioning expression lined the professor’s face as he eyed her more critically now. Clearly, this information hadn’t been made known to him. He regarded her carefully, as though trying to sense any visible sign of misgivings to her words.

“You wanted to journey here alone? You do realize how much more dangerous that is, don’t you? While a lot of the pokémon that live along the trails and forests between here and New Bark Town are relatively low maintenance, there are more evolved, more dangerous pokémon that roam about as well.” He looked appropriately worried and alarmed at her admission, and even more so at her rather unimpressed, unconcerned expression. She glanced at Totodile. He looked away.

“I can appreciate the sentiment, Professor Oak, but the most I ran into were some Gastly and Haunter in the…haunted forest. Other than that, the trip here was pretty uneventful.”

“You didn’t run into any challenging trainers on the road?” His eyebrows raised slightly, an incredulous expression painting his face. His tone was just as surprised, and his face morphed into further concern when she merely shrugged.

“We saw them in town,” was all she said and before he could press forward, curious now at how she managed to accomplish that, Mr. Pokémon was bustling back in, folds of cloth bundled in his arms. He was already unwrapping the contents, drawing Professor Oak’s attention off the woman and back on the reason she was here: the pokémon egg. Even Totodile sat up, his interest piqued. He sniffed the air hungrily, but stayed himself, remembering he wasn’t some scavenging wild pokémon and that he could do just as well with a bowl of packaged food—if the old man had any, that is. He smelled a Meowth somewhere around here, but the feline was nowhere to be seen.

Setting the bundle carefully on the table, Lupin leaned in, and the last piece of clothe was peeled away to reveal the egg she had seen in Professor Elm’s email a week ago. The pristine white eggshell was only interrupted by the irregular spots of triangular designs of bright red and cheerful blue. It was rather breathtaking up close and personal and she raised a hand, gingerly and unsure, before she was given the okay by Mr. Pokémon’s nod to touch. It was warm and comforting, and she swore she felt something shift inside, the sign of a living being growing inside. A breath escaped her and she smiled.

“I-It’s alive.”

“Yes, it is. It’s just so sad that it was abandoned.”

That was a bit of a joy killer. Lupin’s expression died down a bit and she stared at him, somewhat stunned. “Abandoned?”

He nodded slowly with a melancholy tracing his weathered face. “I’m personal friends with some breeders outside of Goldenrod City. They hadn’t had any Togepi, Togetic, or Togekiss trainers stop by their establishment for a long time, if ever, in fact. And yet, one day, they check the yard and there it was. The egg was sitting in the morning sunlight, alone and undisturbed.” Mr. Pokémon paused. “This sometimes happens. Eggs appear at breeders’ places, random and erratically. We don’t know why. Maybe the parents are unfit and they recognize it and see a viable survival option with humans. Maybe they’re dying and can’t raise their young or won’t be around long enough to see them hatch and no others of their kind to help. Whatever the reason, this event tends to happen. Pokémon eggs appear, and breeders or daycare owners or whoever else has found them take over. But I managed to wheedle my way to having this little one wind up into my possession, charm and wit aside.”

He winked and reached to give the egg a brief, fond pat on the shell. “Professor Elm, I knew, would be very excited to have this as a part of his research, but his recent trip out of Johto prevented an immediate pickup. That’s where you came in, and I’m glad you were able to make it here.” She nodded, not sure how else to respond to that, and studied the egg once more. It really was pretty, if a little odd looking. It was almost endearing, actually, once she was used to the peculiarity. Totodile sniffed from the ground, peeping quietly, curiously.

“Yes, I’m actually quite jealous. If I had known sooner, I would have petitioned for the egg myself, but as much as I’d like to study it, Professor Elm has already laid a claim to it,” Professor Oak said with a chuckle. “And I also have a few things on my plate that would make it nearly impossible to make time for hatching a pokémon egg and then studying its hatchling at this point in time. I’m sure I’ll be seeing plenty of things regarding it once it’s hatched, though.”

“Right, well…I should probably head out then, if he wants it that badly.” She eyed her bag, stooping to pick it up, then paused when she noticed Totodile, the way he slumped on the ground and looked so haggard. She would admit, she felt a twinge of pity for him. The past few days steeped in the unusual and strained silence told her that he most definitely was not okay. She could smell the faint aroma of fear that wafted off of him from time to time, and the interest and curiosity that had once glittered in his yellow-red eyes was now replaced with suspicion and mistrust aimed solely at her. He was rather disciplined in keeping it locked up tight and not uttering a peep of his concerns, that much else she would admire. But his scent gave away his deeply hidden terror. She felt guilt worm its way into her core and she avoided his eyes, straightening empty-handed.

“I…think we should rest first, though, if that’s all right? Just for an hour or so, before we go.”

She sensed rather than saw movement below her and caught a peek of blue creeping in closer out the corner of her eye, but she didn’t look down at Totodile again. Mr. Pokémon grinned and nodded amicably, carefully wrapping the egg back up, for protection or warmth or both, before carefully handing it to her. She cradled the object and stooped once more, this time to pack her bag with the new object, mindful of its fragility as she further compacted soft things around it as a barrier.

“Of course! You and your pokémon can rest up! I was about to suggest the very same! I can get you anything you like, if you want. Tea, lunch, a nap, whatever you need.”

“Coffee,” Lupin agreed, tucking the bag under a chair and giving it a pat before standing again. She resisted the urge to correct Mr. Pokémon about Totodile. It was simpler if she didn’t bother with the explanation. “If you don’t mind. And some food and water for him.”

The older man bobbed his head, and turned on his heel, ambling out of the room with a jovial step, leaving her alone once again with Professor Oak. He motioned toward the table and she nodded, settling in an empty chair while he took his previous seat.

“So…you’re an associate of Professor Elm, then? Where is that you live?”

“Kanto. The region just over the mountains to the east. Pallet Town is where I’ve had my lab established and it’s where I’ve been for plenty of years.” Professor Oak paused, studying her face, as though he was trying to recall whether he’d seen her before or not. The scrutiny left Lupin feeling a little unnerved, but it passed when he smiled, his expression softening. “Perhaps when you have the time or when you decide to leave the lab in New Bark Town, you could pop over to Kanto and see our sights. There are plenty of them. And I’m sure your Totodile would enjoy it as well.”

Once again, she had to swallow back down her reflex to deny that he was hers, that she didn’t have any pokémon, that she didn’t want any. She said as much that he wasn’t already earlier, hadn’t she? Instead, she smiled, although it felt more like a grimace to her. Totodile had ambled closer to the professor when she wasn’t looking, she suddenly noticed. A silent protest and a protective barrier, she realized. He stared back at her with cold reptilian eyes, unblinking, unwavering. She couldn’t read his expression, and that may very well pertain to his lacking many facial muscles to do so, but even if he had, she doubted he’d let her in on his thoughts. He wanted her to know he was upset without saying it and was going to the closest authority figure in the threshold. She looked away and from the corner of her eye, saw him do the same.

“Right. Maybe. I still haven’t really decided what I really want to do. I don’t even know if anyone is looking for me or missing me yet. Nobody’s put in a missing person’s notice quite yet, according to the police, and I don’t even know where I came from.” Her ears pinned a little tighter against her skull beneath her hat, her hands curling in uncertainty and with the urge to fidget, to tinker, to do something other than just sit there idly. The names of other countries sounded strange and felt even stranger on the tongue: Unova, Sinnoh, Hoenn. And those were just a few she could remember. Did she come from any one of them? If so, she was a long way from home.

She felt eyes on her, and it was unnerving at first. She wanted to snap, but courtesy won over personal twitchiness and she kept her gaze locked on a knot of wood before her, eyes going over the grain, twist and spiral of the darker patterns. She felt eyes on her, and at first, didn’t want to acknowledge them. She nearly jumped when another hand appeared and dropped on top of hers on the tabletop, giving them a warm squeeze before retreating. It was a brief contact and the warmth of the hand from moments before was fading already, her skin prickling in response, a reminder that the moment had indeed just occurred.

“Perhaps instead of sitting around, waiting for answers to come to you, you should go out looking for them. The world may be big, but chances are that you might run into someone who knows who you are, someone who can help you. I’m not saying you should just up and run for the hills, it’s just some friendly advice. Stagnating in one spot might not benefit you, but then again, maybe it would. In the end, it’ll be up to you on what you want done.”

She stared at him in astonishment, too stunned to say anything in return at first. Her words continued to go left unsaid as Mr. Pokémon came bustling back inside, helping set up the table with several bowls on a tray filled with a delicious smelling chowder, a mug of coffee for Lupin, and some more tea for himself and Professor Oak. Then he left again, returning seconds later with Totodile’s dishes.

“You actually came just in time for lunch! Now, why don’t we all just relax for a little, before anyone has to go and hit the road again, huh?” He gave a booming laugh, settling in a third empty seat. The setting was surreal to Lupin, as though she had suddenly become an onlooker. It was too normal a setting after being on the road for a week. It felt…normal. It was a nice sentiment to hold on to, even if it was only temporary. She wanted to hold onto that feeling, even if it was in the company of strangers she had only just met, hold onto it and not let go and make the precious few seconds count. Maybe she had this before, and letting herself soak in a similar setting would help.

As the minutes ticked by, and noon waned away, she began to slowly realize that probably wasn’t going to happen. No magical fanfare interrupted her idle thoughts, no sudden epiphany struck her down, no flood of memories broke whatever dam was holding them back. She was still the same blank slate with only an airy feeling in her chest, trying to rush a recovery she had no clue how to ease into to begin with.

The departure of Professor Oak was the only interruption to her internal dilemma, breaking the mantra up and helping ease her away from the pitfall of disappointment. They gathered in the small den by the front door, exchanging good byes with one another. When he turned to Lupin, he held his hand out and she grasped it and noted with some surprise he had a very strong grip. He gave it a hard squeeze, watching her carefully.

“Just remember what I told you earlier. You can choose to do nothing or choose to do something about your predicament. It’s all up to you,” he said, his face quiet and unreadable for a few long moments. Then the seriousness fell away when he gave her that kindly smile again and released his hold on her, turning to the open doorway. Professor Oak dipped a hand in his pocket and with the flick of a wrist, whipped out a miniaturized pokéball settled between his fingertips. “And take care of that Totodile of yours.”

The ball doubled in size at the press of a button and it split open, a surge of light springing forward and coalescing into solid shape. Gargantuan wings shot open, a craning neck settled into an S-shaped crook, a body rippling of power and muscle hunched forward. A tail snaked around, its tip burning brighter than campfire. A dusky-orange dragon with a creamy, armored underbelly towered over the professor, regarding its trainer first with narrowed eyes, before turning its gaze on her and Mr. Pokémon. A deep rumble echoed from its broad chest, making Lupin’s tail bristle under her coat. Professor Oak patted the dragon on its neck.

“Oh, Champ, you overgrown lizard, stand down,” the professor _tut_ ’ed at the monstrous creature. Immediately, the dragon quieted, although the suspicion-riddled eyes didn’t lessen their intensity. She heard a soft peeping gasp at her side and Lupin glanced over to see Totodile sitting beside her, staring at the dragon in awe.

“A _Charizard_ …Arceus above, he’s _huge_.”

The Charizard lowered its shoulders and neck just enough to allow the older man to mount a thing yet sturdy-looking leather saddle she hadn’t noticed before lifting back up. Professor Oak gave Mr. Pokémon and herself another farewell wave, before patting the dragon’s neck.

“All right, then, on to Goldenrod, Champ,” the professor called.

“I’ll look forward to yours and Mary’s next show!”

Mr. Pokémon laughed and waved as the dragon shot into the sky, wind buffeting those below. Lupin hurriedly rushed a hand up to keep her hat from flying off, eyes never leaving the huge creature as it lifted with ease that belied its bulk into the air. In no time at all, the dragon was a speck in the clear blue sky and then gone altogether, a bone-chilling roar left in its wake as it left.

She would admit, she was rather impressed at the display. She hadn’t seen any pokémon that big before. Mr. Pokémon chuckled beside her, as though reading her thoughts and he clapped her on the shoulder.

“He likes to show off his trophy pokémon whenever he gets the chance, the prick. Guess it’s the advantages of being a world-renowned pokémon professor. And Champ is just as famous, having been one of his championship showcase teammates.”

“Championship?” Lupin echoed.

“The Pokemon League,” Totodile provided from below. “Wait. He used to be younger?”

“The Indigo Plateau,” Mr. Pokémon nodded, having not heard Totodile’s smartass remark. There was a reverent gleam in his eyes now. “The Pokemon League, in short, is the ultimate goal of many trainers between here in Johto and over in Kanto. Other regions have their own championships and Pokémon Leagues, but the cream of the crop, in my opinion, will always be here at the Indigo Plateau. And I’ve traveled all over the world.” The older man grinned, waving a hand. “But it’s not for everyone and not everyone is cut out for it.”

He allowed a notable pause to pass between them, a comfortable silence to ease from the subject. He took the momentary reprieve to check the time on his watch and he sighed. “I suppose you should get going so you can get closer to Catallia City. You won’t make it until tomorrow, sadly, but at least you’ll be halfway there. Thank you again for coming all the way out here.”

“Thank you for the hospitality,” Lupin returned. She already had her pack, having sensed that her time here was coming to a close and wanting it on hand for a quick departure. Mr. Pokémon nodded, still giving her that friendly smile of his.

“If you’re ever up in the area, stop by if you’d like. I enjoy the company and I have an open door policy to traveling trainers whenever they need a rest stop before hitting the homestretch to Violet City.”

She gave a placating nod once again, shifting her pack more comfortably onto her shoulders, while Totodile huffed at her side. Lupin thanked him again, shook his hand and turned on her heel to head back to the main road.

_Homestretch,_ she thought with a relief. A heavy weight that had been settling in the pit of her stomach, an apprehension that soured her stomach, dissipated at the sagging new weight in her pack. She was halfway complete, and soon, this little errand would be over in a few days. Her idle thoughts returned as her feet carried on a monotonous path down the road. Soon, the apprehension she thought she’d been rid of was back tenfold within the hour, a different bitter taste coating the back of her throat. The professor’s small words, while humble, left an impact on her thoughts. She did have a choice in whether her situation could improve or not. She could sit and fester, and hope answers came her way. Or, alternatively, she could go out in search of answers, go search for the place or people she was missing from. And, as much as it was annoying to admit, Totodile’s words echoed back to her as well from days before.

It ate at her for the rest of the afternoon and she mulled over the choices, but it slowly began to dawn on her that there wasn’t really much of a choice. Sitting on her ass was the lazy, roundabout way to get answers, and it was barely that. To go out and broaden her search—that would probably be more beneficial.

Not to mention, it felt more comforting to be out on the road than stuck in a lab. She felt less at home there, confined and under constant watch. While she wouldn’t say she felt more so traveling, it gave her a better grasp on her own decisions, instead of feeling helpless, hopeless, a child with no understanding, and constantly looked at with pity and sympathy. She couldn’t fault the two back at the lab for their reactions, but it left her sizzling under the scrutiny.

She needed out. And after she returned, she would look into plotting a next plan of action to get her back onto the road again.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

 


	10. Help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3**

**Chapter Nine:  
Help**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_It is not enough to help the feeble up, but to support him after._  
**-William Shakespeare**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

By the time they’d left Mr. Pokémon’s and traveled back down the road headed toward Catallia City, storm clouds were gathering in up on the horizon. They rose above the tree line, creeping along to overtake the cheerful blue sky with a foreboding darkness. It turned gloomy in a hurry, and the wet scent and moist touch of the air foretold of a good set of showers to be coming their way. The balmy temperature slowly began to descend. And yet, despite Totodile’s complaints about the cold, he seemed empowered by the impending downpour. His tired demeanor began to pick up in energy, evidenced by his pace becoming less sluggish and more locomotive.

When Lupin finally called it to pitch camp, he was more amicable, but still as quiet as ever. She was glad that she bought the tent she had been carrying, even if it hadn’t been necessary until now to use. Lugging it around had begun to feel like she’d bought it for nothing. It was a one-man tent, just enough for herself, her gear, and her sleeping bag all in a snug space. She went through the surprisingly easy setup fairly quickly, putting the poles through designated slots and then settling it on higher ground, well away from dips and furrows that may become mini-lakes of puddles. Just as she finished tucking everything into the safety of the erected tent, the rain began to unexpectedly pour in earnest. She was half soaked within the first few seconds before she ducked inside with a startled yelp, her tail puffing up beneath her coat. Totodile, however, seemed quite happy at the downpour and looked quite at home.

_Of course,_ Lupin thought. _He’s a water-type. Why wouldn’t he? He thrives in this kind of environment._

He waddled through the mud not far from Lupin’s tent and the rain just sluiced it right off and then he’d shuffle through it again, and the rain would wash it off all over. The never ending cycle didn’t seem to bother him. He even settled down at last in a growing puddle, letting the mud and the rain pile up around him while Lupin, watching from the see-through netting as she changed clothes and then dug into a travel-ready meal, quietly wishing the rain could have waited until after she’d had a fire set to give her something warm to eat.

_At least we had something before this,_ she thought morosely. She played with her spoon through the dregs of the packaged travel-ready meal. In all honesty, she was still hungry, even after three bowls of the chowder from earlier today. She absently wondered just how much she actually could eat while she finished off her cold meal and guzzled down some fresh water. Eyeing her pack, she peeked at some of the travel-ready pokémon chow, and yanked it out before calling to Totodile for food. He was ignoring her, however, and it took until after she’d poured him some in a dish that she’d noticed this.

“Hey! Food! You know, stuff you eat to gain energy from!”

He didn’t answer, continuing to wallow happily away in his muddy water. She sighed. Fine, then, he could stay out there. That was all right with her. She didn’t want him dirtying everything up if he felt inclined to come crawling back over this way anyway. She tossed the food back in the bag and then everything else in her satchel before bedding down for the night. The heat was welcome in the sleeping bag and it lulled her for some time in a half-way stage between waking and sleep, while her hands absently picked at the charm and dog tags around her neck.

Her fingers played the most along the dog tags, along the bumps and dips of the engraved letters and numbers, as though trying to decipher some hidden message between their lines.

_Next thing you know, I’ll try looking for people’s faces in pieces of toast_ , she thought sleepily.

Ha. Right, sure, then she’d find out right afterwards that she really _was_ some weird sort of pokémon/human hybrid. The thought made her smile in spite of herself as she curled up and closed her eyes, drifting off to what she hoped would a peaceful sleep.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Of course, peace-by-sleep didn’t come. It rarely did these days. Typical.

She was curled inside her sleeping bag, groggily wondering what it had been that had woken her up this time. Her usual tantrum-by-night-terror wakeup call wasn’t apparent. She wasn’t covered in a sheen of sweat, her heart wasn’t jackhammering away in her chest, the blood wasn’t rushing like a roaring current through her ears. The patter of rain that had hammered at the canopy of her tent when she had fallen asleep was now absent. She noticed that change right away. It must have stopped raining, she realized, and it was a shame. The white noise had been soothing to listen to, and she could just imagine it all over again. That thought alone nearly lulled her back to sleep, when a piercing squeal cut through relative stillness and she jolted upright. It came again, and then a third time. She was already scrambling up and ripping the zipper to the tent’s entrance, ducking her head into the cool night air. She barely felt the chill of the air as her eyes hurriedly searched the campgrounds. Her eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness, and the mounting suspicion that something was very wrong continued to fester in the pit of her stomach.

Then she spotted the clods of earth and mud being uprooted just beyond the tree line. Lumps of dark, multi-legged blobs were lobbed into the air, screeches and hisses galore providing a soundtrack to the otherwise eerie stillness of the night. She pushed to her feet and hurried toward the fracas, her heart jumping to her throat and throbbing painfully away when she realized she didn’t know where Totodile was.

_That little menace, he’d better not be picking fights again!_

She’d had to drag him away from impending battles in Cherrygrove and other little towns every time they’d passed through, and she knew he resented her for tiptoeing away. She even managed to avoid other trainers by either bypassing or circumnavigating them altogether. He always seemed to be raring for a go at some unsuspecting trainer and their pokémon, and it only seemed to increase the longer they were traveling together. With the exception of the ghost-types in the haunted forest, he also seemed keen on attacking wild pokémon and if Lupin didn’t keep an eye on him or planted on her shoulder to ride upon it, he’d waddle off in search of them.

“I was bred for battle, it’s in my blood. I was sent to the lab for studies, but in the end, I’m meant to be with a trainer to travel with,” he’d told her once when she had asked. For a cold-blooded reptile, he certainly spoke more like a hot-blooded creature, and he had the energy of one as well, despite his protests of cold and sluggishness.

_And the one night I leave him alone, he goes looking. Dammit all._

Yet, even with the strangeness of it all was that for the past several days, he had been quite subdued and withdrawn, unwilling to look her in the eye for very long like he’s done before. She knew something was wrong and she _knew_ it was because of her. He was afraid of her. Ever since the night of the full moon, he’d been afraid of her. The stench of fear, discomfort, and nervousness clung to him and while he’d continued his charade of acting fine yet quiet didn’t quite work. He was biding his time, waiting to get back, waiting to get away from her. Trundling off to fight pokémon might have been a coping mechanism, something to fall back on. He expressed his interest in wanting to battle with earnestness, emphasizing that he was only a temporary lab pokémon until Professor Elm presented him to an aspiring trainer needing a starter. He wanted out, and his one chance to see things and get a feel for them, and she had, in a way, ruined it to a point. She’d soiled his experience, tarnished it.

She scowled, although it was half-hearted, as she squelched bare feet through muddy terrain and pushing past the tangled weavings of the underbrush. She couldn’t find it in her to be quite as angry at Totodile anymore. Something came sailing out into the air from between the trees. She ducked when a mud clod came sailing her way, ears pinned to her skull, tail puffed up in surprise. Her attention was drawn to the source, and the first thing she found was the blue reptile. The second note of interest that caught her eye was the ground and how it simply writhed and squirmed and scuttled along over and under itself. It took a few moments to fully register the menagerie of pokémon that had too many legs, bulbous bodies, the way they sprawled not only land, but also up in the trees and how some were even hanging in midair…

_Spiders_ , her head supplied suddenly in recognition. _Spider pokémon._ She felt a chill roll down her spine, creeping along at a slow, mind-numbing pace when she finally observed that there was a white noise reverberating in the air, thrumming the stillness in a monotonous cycle. Then the white noise grew in clarification and she heard the chant wrapped in the proverbial din.

“Meat, meat, meat, meat!”

It was a mantra for blood, and it was only then that she was really seeing what was happening: Totodile encircled by the spindly-legged creatures, his scales glistening not with water but with webbing and it was hindering his movements. He snapped at an acid-green and black spider as it encroached closer on the trapped reptile. In response, the spider threw up its abdomen and hissed back. Totodile squealed and curled against the ground with a fearful look in his yellow-red eyes, mouth gaping in an attempt to scare right back. His legs were tangled, his tail flopped uselessly behind him and his skull was barely visible.

“Meat, meat, meat!”

The chanting continued, the spiders whispering away with glee as they pressed closer. One spat a gob of webbing at the still-struggling reptile and the piercing scream at being trapped escaped Totodile’s throat. That was what she had heard when she awoke: the moans of an ensnared animal, instinct butting in over logic, and a primordial fear taking over. Lupin was moving quicker than her mind was working. She snapped a low-hanging branch off from a tree, the wood creaking in protest as she did so before she stepped forward with care. The closest little body she encountered was barely two feet away from where she’d been standing. It saw her too late and was already sailing into the air with a protesting scream when she struck. The chanting halted after she hit her third and fourth spider, sending them sailing into the darkness to strike a tree, a bush, the ground. Their legs flailed wildly as some spun about and landed on their backs. The rest of the nest turned to face the new threat, all at once ignoring the thrashing, wailing Totodile still caught in the sticky web.

Ominous black eyes stared at her from all highs and lows, their mandibles moving independently of one another as they regarded the werewolf. That dreading chill wormed its way into her spine again, while her stomach slithered lower into her abdomen until it dropped away completely.

Then, “Meat.”

“Meat, meat.” Another chimed in.

“Meat, meat, meat.” Two added in unison.

Soon, the whole nest was chanting once again in unison. Lupin’s tail puffed up in alarm as some of those she had knocked away were rolling over onto their legs or were getting assistance from others. Totodile quaked, his jaws clacking open and closed, hisses drawing out from between, but the noise was nearly drowned out by the din from the spider pokémon. Lupin rapidly tried to remember what they were, yet the name kept escaping her. They were small, but they had numbers, she knew. Numbers could mean a lot. Numbers could turn favor in a fight.

Then she saw another shape moving, creeping along in the shadows of the tree top branches above. It was moving slowly but steadily, and it was considerably larger than the littler green and black bodies shuffling closer to her. She smacked the branch at several that were encroaching too close to her personal space, distracted. They screeched in pain as they went sailing. Her eyes were off the larger shadow for a brief second, but it was enough. The revealed creature was another spider, but this was much larger, as she suspected. Its colours were muted, but reminiscent to something she’d label as poisonous: soft maroon and banded with dusky purple and muddy yellow. Its legs were longer and thinner like sabers, and decidedly more deadly-looking compared to the fatter legs of the smaller spiders, as was the intimidating horn that decorated the helm of its head. The littler ones had stubbier horns, but she doubted either of them was any less effective in an attack if utilized.

It crawled along the trunk of an especially large oak tree, its girth bobbing along as it settled on the ground. It was nearly as tall as she was, and she wasn’t very tall to begin with. It regarded her with the same black eyes as its smaller counterparts, its mandibles tipped with lethal fangs rubbing over one another like hands rubbing together. The presence of the larger spider, however, had stilled the smaller ones and they stopped stalking closer to her. The nest and its newly arrived larger patron were still between her and the still-struggling Totodile, however.

“Intruder,” the larger spider announced; its voice light and feminine. The little green ones mimicked her, echoing the word in a chilling whisper that overlapped one another. The spider advanced a step. It was unperturbed by the brandished makeshift weapon in Lupin’s hand.

Lupin spared a quick glance at Totodile. Their eyes met for the briefest second. She could see he was terrified and she could taste and smell the fear stink as well, it was so strong, so potent. In that instant, it made her afraid. For all the bravado and know-it-all air he sported, he was still so young, putting up a brusque front. He may annoy her at times, exasperate her at others, but she had stuck it out this long with the little reptile and in return, he tolerated her. She sure as hell wasn’t going to let him get done in by some overgrown arachnids. In a small way, she felt somewhat attached to the little bugger, vices and all. They were starting to become endearing, even. She was surprised by it when it struck her in that second, but she had to force the shock of it all to be put to the side. Now wasn’t the time.

She aimed the branch she was using as a makeshift bat at the female spider, who she was now assuming was the queen of the nest before her.

“Let me get the little guy, and nobody gets hurt,” she barked out, loud and clear so she couldn’t be misunderstood. The whispers had continued, even in the thrall of the queen’s arrival, although when the large female stirred at last, everything fell to an eerie hush. She advanced another step with a slender striped limb. She kept her dark gaze pinned on Lupin, unblinking and unwavering. It was unnerving and she felt another chill jolt down her backside like lightning.

“Intruder,” the spider announced again. The littler ones echoed her, as though in a trance. They took a step forward, the first bout of real movement since the queen’s arrival. They chattered incessantly in that whispery tone and it resonated into the darkness. Lupin bared her teeth in warning and tightened her grip on the branch. White-hot indignation grew in her chest and spread out to her limbs, heating her from the coldness that had enveloped her since she first laid eyes on the multi-limbed creatures. It gave her a much-needed kick start and she advanced herself, stomping a bare foot hard on the squishy earth. It had a much desired effect of startling some of the closer spider pokémon into retreating several steps. The rest stopped altogether. The maroon queen hissed.

“Intruder!”

“I get it! I’m on your land! And I’m so _very_ sorry, so we’ll pack up and leave! Just let me get him and we’ll be out of here in a jiffy!”

“Meat,” the queen spat back. “Meat for my children. Cannot let you go. Must feed my children.”

Lupin, for the briefest interlude, felt the cold rushing back in, overwhelming the heat that had encouraged her seconds before and it froze her to her spot. It didn’t take a genius to figure out the queen’s meaning. She darted her gaze around to the little beady black eyes that were locked onto her. They chattered away, their mandibles moving in a frenzy around their mouths, the whispered ghostly word of ‘ _meat’_ echoing in the air. Lupin snarled again and brandished the branch. She swatted at two of the green spiders, and was about to swipe at another when the branch was suddenly yanked from her hands. She threw her head back to see some of the creepy crawlers had snuck up into the branches above and were dangling the branch by tendrils of webbing.

Something struck her arm and her chest simultaneously, something sticky and wet. She looked to see the same silvery-white threads that had trapped Totodile were now covering her. Another tendril spat at her legs and feet, then with a hard yank, she was sent sprawling out on her backside, her head suddenly throbbing with a dull ache from impact. Probing little digits began to poke at her body, and she felt the sticky tendrils pinning her down, her legs first and then her arms. A hideous pair of mandibles presented itself in her face, and she gagged at creature. Black eyes stared down, emotionless and cold, while tiny fangs tipping the mandibles speared forward, inches away from Lupin’s face.

These little monsters! Is this what they did to unsuspecting trainers that traveled through this area? Did they attack unknowing trainers and their pokémon and drag them off into the night, never to be heard of or seen again? Fear blossomed in her suddenly.

_I’ll never find out who I am. And whoever might be missing me, they might never know I—_

She stopped short of that thought, refusing to finish it. No. No, no, _no_. She was _not_ going to end up as bug food. She wasn’t going to go quietly into the night; she wasn’t going to go out in such a lame and piteous way. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to allow Totodile to die this way either. If anything, he would rather it be by tooth and claw, face to face and in battle, not in some predator’s nest, bound and gagged and sipped up like soup.

She wasn’t going to let that happen, she _couldn’t_.

_And that egg—it’ll never hatch at the lab like it’s supposed to, I can’t let it die out here, either._

A low rumble built up in her chest, building until it became an almighty bellow that startled several of the crawling bodies on top of her. Some of them leapt away in the midst of shock, letting out a pitiful squeal of fear as it did. They hadn’t covered her face yet, and the red-hot fire in her chest began to grow anew, spreading out to her limbs again, this time all the way through. The maroon queen came scuttling over to pin Lupin down one with one of her spindly-tipped limbs. Despite their thin appearance, they were incredibly strong. The werewolf was right in her assumptions; it was as deadly as it looked. She could feel its tip piercing through the webbing and her clothing, stabbing down to her flesh, but only just. Lupin grunted, pushing the pain aside as a minor annoyance when the queen loomed over her face, her mandibles working in that fidgety manner of theirs.

“Meat for my children, yes. Not much meat, but meat for my babies to feast off of.”

“Feast! Feast! Yes, feast! Feast!”

The fire was crawling up her throat and it tickled, almost like a cough at the back of her throat, but warmer and more pleasant to endure. Lupin glared at the black gaze staring down at her, trying not to gag on the breath that wafted out of the spider’s mouth.

“Hate to disappoint you, but I ain’t lettin’ that happen, you bitch.”

Heat drifted over her like a veil, settling into her bones like an old acquaintance. It was a strange sensation, and yet, it felt familiar and alien all at the same time. The spider queen hissed, jerking her skull back and forth in alarm, removing the appendage that had been pinning Lupin down. The webbing that had confined her suddenly felt looser. She experimented just how loose by ripping her leg out of its bonds and smashing it into the side of the spider’s abdomen. The little green ones squealed and scrambled away as an abrupt flare of light flashed into being.

Sparks danced into the air, flames flicking to life, even if only briefly. The spider queen wailed, having been thrown to her side. Her legs twitched in the air, jerking spasmodically to right her bulbous girth. Lupin rolled to her side and pushed up to her feet, glad to be back upright and not down and at the mercy of the creepy little creatures. The webbing that had bound her moments before was burning away and the smell of acrid smoke filled her lungs, tinging the air with its harsh fragrance.

“What tricks, what tricks? What manner of pokémon are you? Not human, not trainer, no. Fire-type? Fire kills!” She hissed again, but Lupin could sense the fear now, could see it reflected in her eyes and off her shiny carapace. Lupin paused at that. Reflection. Light. It was too bright to be moonlight, too dense in this part of the forest. No, this was more like…

She looked down, as though fully aware of what was going on for the first time.

And she stared.

Flames licked at her hands, but her flesh didn’t curl and blister and blacken like she had expected them to. It tickled at her skin, pleasant and heartening, and a sense of coziness washed over her as she stared into the flames, watched the tendrils dance and twirl. She flexed her fingers experimentally and found them to be completely fine and not stiff from pain.

Fire…she could create fire? Out of thin air?

_Well, I just keep getting weirder and weirder now, don’t I? At least I can save money on matches and lighter fluid now._

Her gaze settled back on the spider queen, who was now upright upon her spindly limbs, although her pitch-black eyes were no more. They were purple, dusky and muted like the rest of her, and those eyes were staring at the flames that licked at the werewolf’s hands with intense hatred. She bared her fangs at Lupin and hissed in fear and resentment. The horde of green spider pokémon had the good sense to flee while they could, leaving their queen and matron behind. She stood between her and Totodile, who was still bound by webbing on the ground, immobile and unable to escape. Lupin snarled and advanced, menacing in every step and weaving her arms back and forth. The spider hissed and stood her ground for as long as she could, unwilling to abandon even the tiniest scrap of prey before instinct won out.

She scuttled away from the licking flames with a screech, brandishing her fangs in a failed attempt to scare Lupin.

“Out! Out! Put it out! Fire burns! Destroys! Kills!”

“Damned straight it does,” Lupin muttered darkly, herding the spider queen away from the prone form on the ground. She jerked her hands out, as though to swipe at the spider. Flames shot out at the motion, extending her reach. It rushed forward and licked the arachnid’s exoskeleton. She screamed and scurried away from the heat and light, disappearing into the cover of cool darkness. Her howls could still be heard, but they were retreating and fading away quickly. Soon there was no more of them, but Lupin growled all the same, every inch of her tail bristling. She stared over the grounds, almost expecting the creepy crawlies to come inching their way back where she wasn’t looking, but only the dancing shadows created by her flames could be made out.

Only when she was sure they were truly gone did she lurch forward toward Totodile’s still form. He was nearly indiscernible, his entire body covered in the silvery weavings. She hesitated on touching him, afraid of the flames might catch his scales by accident. She looked to both of her hands, momentarily feeling at a loss.

_I made the fire come to life. I can put it out, can’t I?_

She focused on it dying, concentrated on it going out by her will alone. If she had somehow made it start up seemingly out of nowhere, then she could do the same in reverse. Slowly, the flames died, one by one and her hands returned to normal, no longer aglow. The heat died as well, and the chill of the night came rushing back, although she barely noticed as she immediately tore into the webbing covering Totodile.

Knocking a bulk of it aside, she carefully lifted him up, immediately worried by his limp form and shallow breathing.

“Hey…” She called softly, pulling him closer and untangling bits of web as she did. She gave him a faint shake. “Hey, wake up. They’re gone.”

_Spiders, spiders, spiders, what do I know about them? Spiders are hunters, they ambush prey or lay in wait for prey to get caught in their webs and then they…oh no._

Spider venom.

She immediately began turning the little reptile over, carefully searching with her eyes and hands before her fingertips slipped in something wet along the side of his neck. At first, she thought it to be blood, but the scent was too acrid and noxious. Then she hurriedly wiped it on her clothes, but her fingertips were tingling already.

She pressed her ear to his body, heard his faint wheeze of breath and was startled by the sudden, half-hearted squirming in her arms.

“Stupid…why didn’t you run when you had a chance? They could’ve…gotten you too. They almost _did_.”

He paused, panting hard. Lupin shook her head. “I’m fine, see? Nothing to worry about, I scared them off.” she replied, trying to keep her tone light and unburdened by the heaviness her thoughts were being weighed down by. She didn’t think he saw—he didn’t seem to know. She pushed it to the side, focusing back on spiders.

_Spiders. Venom. Don’t some spiders cause necrosis? We need to get to town, get some antivenin in him. Medical attention. We need to get help._

The swirling chaos in her head came to halt at that. She had to get to a town. _Focus on the goal of getting to town. Pack up, leave. Start now. Don’t panic. Just go pack, then leave._

She pushed up to her feet, trotting back to camp, ignoring the mud that now speckled her pants and feet. He stirred in her arms again, his movements sluggish and tired.

“Where’re we going?”

“We need to get back to a town.”

“Closest is almost a half-day away…Catallia City, we won’t make there.”

She halted on the spot at those words, realizing they were true. The next town was nearly a half-day’s journey away. Mr. Pokémon’s home was nearly the same distance. Either way, his chances of living were dwindling, no matter which way she went.

Hope withered in her chest at the admission that even if she tried, she might lose Totodile.

_But I can’t just give up. I can’t just…do nothing and let him_ die _. How long does this venom take before it kills? If I run, maybe I can make it._

He may annoy her, but again, she felt a rather late-blooming affection for the stubborn blue brat. He was the only one who put up with her back at the lab, even if it wasn’t entirely out of good intentions or even good-hearted interest. It irked her, but she hadn’t exactly been a shining example when she returned barb for barb. And even when he was scared, he tried to put up a good front, and it was something she could respect, but more importantly it was something she could _relate_ to. She was afraid of never remembering who she was, of the memories of whoever she used to know permanently erased. She was afraid of being left to wander aimlessly about without a clue as to who she used to be. She knew he was afraid of never making it out in the real world with a trainer, like he’d been bred to do. He spoke too often about leaving and traveling, and the yearning in his voice belied his dread of never going. He was too restless for the life of a lab pokémon. He deserved to travel. He deserved to do that with the trainer that chose him, whoever they may be. She didn’t want to be the cause for that dream to end.

She stroked the top of his head, then gently settled him on the ground as she started bustling to break down camp. He remained where she left him, slumped and watching with half-lidded, glazed over eyes. She packed her bag, carefully arranging everything so that the egg wouldn’t be crushed to one side of her pack. Trash was tossed into a wrapper, then stowed away. She hurried with breaking the tent down.

“How long?”

“How long…what?”

“How long do we have?” She snapped the poles down, folded them up and tossed them to the side as she began haphazardly throwing the tent into lumpy folds. Her ears flicked back and forth as she waited intently for an answer. When it wasn’t forthcoming, she whirled, her heart thudding with dread. No—

He was still watching her. She swallowed past the thick, painful lump in her throat.

“ _How long?_ ” She repeated firmly.

“A few hours. Spinarak poison is potent. I think I would prefer Beedrill poison, though. I’d have a little longer.” He paused, then added as an afterthought, “Or maybe not. They gore out big holes in their victims. Poison doesn’t get a chance to work, not when you’re bleeding out too quickly for it to do its job.”

She didn’t like how glib and nonchalant he sounded. She didn’t like that he seemed to readily accept he might not make it. It rubbed her the wrong way how…how _complacent_ he sounded with it. _That isn’t right. That isn’t_ right _._

“Don’t talk like that. We’ll make it,” she said, the words pouring out before she had to chance to filter them. She heard him snort indignantly.

“I don’t want to die. But the reality is that I most likely will.”

“Don’t say that!”

“Why? It’s true. Why should I delude myself into thinking I have a chance—” he winced, cutting off his retort and curled into a semi-tight ball. Lupin’s hands were shaking as she bundled the tent up and tied it down with the poles. “Why do you care so much? You don’t like me. I know you don’t.”

She hesitated in answering, still not quite ready to admit aloud that she was, in a way, coming to like the smug little Totodile. He was… _endearing_ , if she was to put it nicely. Perhaps it was the quiet few days without him aiming sharp words at her and the relatively quiet hours that had given her room to think. She didn’t want to stay at the lab any more than Totodile. She could relate to his want to leave.

“…you shouldn’t accept dying so quickly. It’s pissing me off,” she said at last, breaking free of her thoughts. She heard him snort behind her as she threw on her pack after clipping the one-man tent into place. Then she attended to her socks and shoes, grimacing at the dirtied mess of her clothing, but reasoned she’d rather put up with mud between her toes than a corpse on her hands.

“For someone who isn’t remotely human…you sound very human right now.”

She paused in the middle of lacing her boot up. Her breath stilled in her chest at the comment. She spared a fleeting glance at the prone Totodile, before returning to her task. “Maybe I was raised by humans.”

He snorted. “Who would go through the headache of raising you?”

His words, while sharp, didn’t feel as prickly as they could have been. It was almost teasing. She leapt to her feet, the pack swinging unevenly, but she balanced out quickly enough and trotted over, scooping up Totodile in one swift move. He barely protested, his body limp as she cradled him against her chest.

“Do you even know where you’re going?”

She remained quiet, ears twitching, her eyes flicking upwards to gaze at the moon, remembering how it had risen on the horizon and how low it was dipping now on the opposite bank. The stars themselves were easy to pinpoint as well for further reference. She turned on her heel and took off back toward the main road.

“This is the most you’ve said to me since the full moon,” she huffed at him as she bounded over a fallen tree. She heard his breath rattle into a croaky sigh. He didn’t respond, not at first. The path loomed ahead and she burst through the underbrush and back onto it. The faint glow of the moon’s light was stronger in the open than it was under the forest’s canopy.

“I didn’t believe you,” he said at last. He curled closer toward her. “When you called yourself a monster, I mean. I didn’t believe you.”

She felt a small twinge at his words, but said nothing. She felt him shiver in her arms.

“We’ll worry about the semantics of that later. Just—” What do you say to someone who has venom creeping along inside of them? She felt her indignation rising up again and before she could filter her words, she blurted out, “What in the hell were you thinking, going after those things? What were you trying to prove?”

The forest on either side of the road was blurring past them, faster than what should have been normal, but neither of them were paying much attention to that, not really. Lupin was keeping a vague eye on the road, while Totodile was busy sucking in breath, his breath rattling with each inhalation. Pain flared in his chest, but it seared like the touch of a red-hot brand in his neck. Each breath hurt to take in and hurt worse to expel. Every pounding step Lupin took rocked through to his core, making him shudder and quake in agony. He wanted her to simply stop, but he couldn’t get the words out. Instead, he clamped down on the urge to snap at her, like he would have done before, and answered her in earnest.

“I told you, I was bred to be a battler. The only downside was my breeders picking me to be sent to the professor’s lab before I could be given to a trainer like the rest of my nest-mates.”

“So you went picking a fight with a nest of those _things_?”

She felt like kicking herself for digging into him about this, here and now, but the words had simply slipped out before she could properly register them. There was no way of taking them back now. He didn’t answer at first, his breathing wheezy and stilted. The sense of urgency renewed itself and Lupin kicked up her pace once more.

“I’m sorry.”

Then it all went downhill and she nearly tripped when she tried to stop. She ended up grabbing at a passing tree trunk for support to slowly steady herself. Her limbs tingled with adrenaline, and yearned to keep going, but her muscles began clamoring for attention, a slow ache working their way into them almost as soon as she stopped. Her chest heaved from the change in pattern while her head buzzed from the rush, but she ignored all that as best she could, staring down at the shivering reptile in her arms. Alarm rose at the sensation, when she realized that the venom was more effective than she realized. _He really doesn’t have that long._

His words were another matter entirely and it struck her hard several belated seconds later. She continued to stare at the side of his head. His eyes were closed, but the one she could see peeped open to look back at her. They were glassy and his eyelid drooped. The secondary eyelid covered nearly half of his eye, but she could see the pain behind it. He dug a paw into her forearm.

“I shouldn’t have wandered off, but…I was tired of you holding me back. I got reckless. I did this.”

They held one another’s gazes for a few moments longer before Lupin tore hers away and started down the main road again. Whatever minute grudge or slight she may have felt in the past few weeks toward Totodile, they melted away in an instant. They weren’t forgotten, but she felt in that moment, that they could be forgiven. He was still young, she reasoned, and had been out to rile her up, and bit by bit, he’d succeeded.

He was quiet for longer this time around, perhaps chafed by the uncomfortable silence and her lack of answering to his apology. He wriggled in her arms, but she only adjusted her grip to hold him better. She was moving quickly, he realized, so much faster than he would have credited her for, given her short legs. But by Legendaries, she was moving _fast_. Even if the ride in her arms wasn’t smooth, she was attempting to prevent from jostling him too much and he didn’t have it in him to rebuff this from her. He didn’t have it in him to tell her to put him in his pokéball, either. Not that he would expect her to, that was. Even if she had, he suspected he’d pass away inside without her knowing until they’d reach the closest Pokémon Center. He felt a twinge of rejection at the idea in an instant. He couldn’t do that to her, but he was loathe to think what was worse: dying in his pokéball or dying in her arms.

He felt tired; he’d used all his energy fighting that horde of Spinarak. At first it had been a few, but then they just kept pouring out of the woodworks. Then he’d wasted his precious energy and time trying to escape their String Shot attacks, only to end up tangling himself further in their webbing. If there was anyone between the two of them that was stupid, it was him. By now, he was beginning to feel the crippling pain that the Spinarak venom was inflicting on him. It was worming its way into his limbs, he could feel it making every nerve ache and cry until it sang with electric jolts and fire. He wanted nothing more than to slide into a pool of cool water to relieve his body, even if he knew it really wouldn’t do much. Just the thought gave him a temporary bliss to hold on to. But soon, even that wasn’t enough to drive away the impending thoughts on the prevalent situation to the forefront of his mind. If a pokémon was poisoned or burned or paralyzed, and immediate help was next to impossible, it was only a matter of time before nature took its natural course. He was frightened to die, but he could only accept that he was beyond help. Holding onto false hope would leave him bitter and resentful until his last moments and he didn’t want to be clouded by it. It wasn’t in him, just as he knew it wasn’t something he could see in his parents, his nest-mates. They all knew and understood, just as he did.

And the fact that this woman, this impossible, frustrating _oddity_ was refusing to admit what he’d already accepted, was beginning to grate on his scales the wrong way. He didn’t care how fast she was; if she didn’t have the speed of the Legendries or an even an Arcanine, then why bother? It was a question he couldn’t answer. He hated not knowing.

He listened to the rhythmic pounding of her heart while his head pressed against her chest, the even breaths she took as she continued to sprint down the dirt road. They wove through bends and twists on the path, her stride never seeming to slow.

“I thought you wanted to be alone when you left,” he finally said at last. “No pokémon. Why are you fighting the inevitable?”

_Why do you give a damn when I gave you such a hard time, ever since you came to the lab,_ he wanted to add. But the question was stuck in his throat. He was surprised at his own inability to voice what he usually wouldn’t have cared to say beforehand. Especially to her.

“I told you before; seeing you just giving up and rolling over to die pisses me off. I’m not gonna let you do that. So buck the fuck up and try to see a silver lining in this. I’m getting you to a center whether you like it or not!”

The words seethed past her tongue like a whip, striking him hard and fast. It left him stunned and speechless. It was then he heard her own fear tinging her voice, seeping in from between the lines. He felt another spasm of pain riddle him, this time to his core and he couldn’t suck up the whimper in time. The arms around him tightened again, a reassuring squeeze, and he let himself go limp in her arms, too drained after bracing himself from the shockwave that continued to roll over him, too exhausted to argue the futility of her task. A part of him wanted to chastise her for not buying any medicines for him, something he would have gladly pointed out prior to her full moon excursion. But that change had instilled in him a primordial fear against a larger predator, and it struck him as odd that he would see her as such, and yet, it was fitting. For all his bravado, he knew that challenged her toe-to-toe would be a fool’s errand. He kept his tongue this time, recognizing that chastising her now wouldn’t make a difference, not out here in the middle of nowhere, far from town, far from the relative safety and secure distance of a Pokémon Center.

They were still so far away…it seemed like an impossible task to achieve.

Pain seized him again and he tried bracing himself anew, focusing on blocking out the pain. Just because he accepted he was going to die, didn’t mean he was going to enjoy it or that it was going to painless. It also didn’t mean he wanted to die. Poison wasn’t a physical enemy he could fight against. It was a phantom that crawled within and destroyed from the inside out. If they had any antidote, he’d feel more at ease and less willing to accept something like this. He wasted no more words, too engulfed with trying to keep the pain at bay, to try and block it out and make this more bearable. He didn’t know how much time had passed. Every second was an eternity as the Spinarak venom worked its way into his system, dredging its toxic tendrils in his blood, his muscles, his organs, his very bones. He was sure he must have passed out at times, before the agony reeled him back to consciousness and set fire anew to his body. He was sure those few times he had been unresponsive, however, that Lupin also had something to do with shaking him awake again.

“Almost there. Just hang on. Don’t sleep, don’t sleep. Stay awake,” her voice suddenly cut through, faint and tinny to his ears. Every breath felt as though an Arbok was squeezing his lungs. The places where the Spinarak had bitten into his more sensitive flesh raged on, a fire in his blood that was unbearable. He was too tired to writhe and wriggle. He felt as helpless now as he did trapped under all that webbing and a terror seized his heart. He just wanted it to end, to go away and stop hurting…

“I said stay awake! We’re almost there! It’s _right there_ , just hang on, dammit!”

He winced at the voice, eyes squeezed shut and both sets of eyelids firmly clamped over them for extra protection. Arceus above, it was _bright_ , a kaleidoscope of colours that blinded him and made him cringe as the sensitivity began to intensify the longer it lingered. Why couldn’t she have just gone on her way like she’d wanted the minute she stepped out of the professor’s lab? She only gave half a damn because he was the professor’s pokémon, after all. She only let him tag along because of the professor as well. But he would understand if things went awry, if things didn’t go according to plan…right? He’d like to think so. He did only as the pokémon researcher had asked. He had escorted the werewolf, even if it wasn’t a complete job.

The voice above was more distant than before, the words too garbled and indistinct to decipher. He barely felt the extra pair of hands handling him now, both with a care and firmness reminiscent of a medical provider. He was listening without attention or care to a conversation that was about as clear as having thick Mareep’s wool stuffed in his ears. He was finally numb to the pain, it was finally _gone_. Or his body was just beyond feeling it any longer. Either way was fine, it was absolute bliss. Except that damned bright light was still present, piercing through even the armored lids of his eyes and he just wished it would go out.

Then he could rest easy.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	11. Care

**Chapter Ten:  
Care**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“I know you’re in there. I can hear you caring.”_ **  
-Dr. House, “ _House M.D._ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Everything hurt; his back, his legs, his tail, and oh, his head. His poor aching skull, it felt like a Dodrio was drilling holes into it. It hurt almost as bad as the sides of his neck. He noticed all of this slowly but surely when he gradually slipped out of the blissful ignorance of the black, and his hurting body began to clamor for his conscious attention. But he was warm, and that was something to be grateful for. It eased most of the pain away, relaxing his tired muscles and he curled a little tighter, and regretted the action almost immediately. A shockwave of pain struck him suddenly, making everything writhe in agony as it rapidly splintered out to every nook and cranny of his scaled hide and he let out a poorly contained wail. His neck especially throbbed and ached, the very last thing to ebb away in its tempo. It didn’t completely dissipate, however, as though it was a physical reminder that he couldn’t move as much as he wanted. So, he experimented, turning and stretching and inching his body along, so he could draft an idea of what he could and couldn’t do, where he could turn and what would be impossible to do at this time.

His groggy mind began to leisurely clear and he felt considerably more like himself as the minutes continued to tick by and he came to a full evaluation of his limits and boundaries. He couldn’t turn his neck, especially toward the right, like he was used to, but the left side was more forgiving and bearable.

The question of, _where am I_ , was immediately answered as scents slowly began to filter in. He quietly and quickly processed the familiarity of his settings. He was in a medical recovery room, with clean tiled floors, clean white walls, and the light settings dimmed. The fragrance of antiseptic and bleach crawled so deeply into his lungs, he was quite convinced he’d never get it out of his system. The quiet hum of machinery greeted him next, low hums and gentle beeps that lulled him briefly, a source of familiarity. He spotted them beside the bed he was on. The bedding consisted of warming blankets, although most had been thrashed to the side in an unkempt heap. He carefully angled his body to twirl in a circle, but stopped at a figure sprawled in a visitor’s chair beside the bed he was in.

Dirtied, disheveled, and appearing utterly exhausted, Lupin was the picture perfect image of a lone traveler, right down from the dusty traveling satchel to her muddied coat, jeans and boots. She looked like she hadn’t even bothered to really clean up. Her head was slumped against her chest, arms crossed loosely on her abdomen, her legs splayed in a makeshift attempt to get comfortable in a considerably _un_ comfortable-looking hospital chair.

_She actually did it. She got me here._

He stared in disbelief at the woman snoozing in front of him. She had done what he thought impossible. A whole half day’s travel—well _over_ half a day, in fact, now that he thought about it—and she’d made it in…

Well, he wasn’t sure how long it had taken, but it couldn’t have been more than a few hours, tops.

He wondered how long he’d been out, but the thought was chased away when a door he’d overlooked in the corner of the room opened. It admitted a woman into the room, her mousy brown hair pulled into a bun. She swept a hand over her skirt and smiled upon seeing Totodile staring at her rather critically.

“Oh, good! You’re awake! Nurse Joy was beginning to get worried,” she greeted, looking him over before venturing closer. “Try not to move around too much. Your neck is still swollen from where the poison had been administered at the injection site.”

Pausing beside Lupin, the woman stooped to gently shake the werewolf’s shoulder. She jumped backward just in time when Lupin bolted up right with a snarled gasp, a fist raised and clenched in midair, ready to strike. She halted mid-swing, suddenly aware of where she was. The mousy-haired nurse backed away, looking torn from calling for help and wanting to resolve the situation herself. Lupin stared, unseeing for a few seconds, heaving air to and from her lungs before calming and lowering her upraised arm, slowly adopting a slightly abashed look.

“I—sorry, I don’t—I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…please, don’t—don’t do that. I don’t like being touched. I’m sorry.” She panted out, colour briefly flushing her cheeks in mild embarrassment. She opened her mouth to say more, but stopped with her mouth half-open when she noticed him staring at her. Relief flooded her features and the stiffness in her frame melted in an instant.

“Oh, thank god, you’re awake. You slept for two days; I was starting to get really worried about you.”

The nurse, briefly forgotten, chose that moment to clear her throat, drawing attention to herself. She avoided Lupin’s mismatched, piercing stare, and found better focus on Totodile instead.

“If you hadn’t gotten here when you did, your Totodile would most definitely have died. Spinarak, especially newly hatched babies, have extremely potent venom. They tend to inject more than they need until they can gauge how to dispense it properly after they’ve gained proper experience.”

The woman hesitated, then added to Lupin with a faint nod. “You should probably report the nest to the police station. We’ve had problems in the past with that particular Ariados and her brood before. They tend to migrate, and we’ll have a brief period where it’s safe to travel between here and Violet City, but around this time of year, she comes back and has a whole nest invading the forest.” She frowned, her brow furrowing with worry. “We’ve had trainers and their pokémon disappear without a trace because of that. The police usually team with the Johto Ranger Division and sweep the forest for them, try to relocate them further away from human establishments, but that Ariados, she tends to come back. It makes traveling hazardous and pitching camp after dark even more so.”

Lupin sighed, exhaling loudly and nodding, slumping in her seat once more. “I’ll be sure to do that. Thank you.” She glanced over at Totodile, studying him, then looked to the nurse again. “How long until he gets discharged?”

“We just need to do one final physical to make sure he’s able to travel. I’ll let Nurse Joy know that he’s awake and that you’ll need a prescription for an antidote written up. Do you know where the pharmacy is at?”

“Downstairs on the first floor, I remember.”

“Right. Well, just hold on for a few minutes and I’ll grab Nurse Joy.” To Totodile, she added with a warm smile, “I’m glad to see you up and about, little guy.”

Then she took her leave, closing the door quietly behind her as she went. There was a momentary interlude of relative silence, before it was broken by the exhausted, but relieved sigh from Lupin. Totodile looked to the woman, who, if it were even possible, slumped further in her chair.

“Don’t ever scare me like that again, or I swear I’ll make a pair of boots out of you,” she griped, although there was no hint of animosity in her tone whatsoever. Not like there used to be when she spoke to him. Her brow wrinkled and creased with worry as she regarded him carefully, mismatched eyes studiously scouring every inch of him that she could see. She sat up a little more, suddenly looking abashed.

“How…how’re you feeling?”

He snorted. “Like death warmed over. But overall…alive.”

Her lips twitched, but they didn’t quite reach a smile. She cast her eyes downward, staring at the floor, her lips slowly turning into a hard frown.

“I should have smelled those bastards and I didn’t. I let us…” She let herself peter out, looking morose and troubled. “I should have checked the area before pitching camp like I’d been doing the past few nights.”

“It was starting to rain.”

“I can still smell through it. Rain is a nuisance, but it ain’t a magical barrier that suddenly kills my nose. That ain’t an excuse.”

He stared at her, bewildered for several long moments. “You didn’t know,” he quietly said, then added, “I…I didn’t even know.”

He felt very small, all of a sudden. He liked to puff up and play the big, bad Feraligatr, but in truth, he knew he was nothing more than a tiny Totodile. He cast his eyes downward. “I didn’t tell you to stop through any pokémart and stock up on supplies. If we’d had any medicine, we wouldn’t have needed to rush here. You didn’t know that and I did. I should have told you.”

She pinned him then with a dark stare that sent a chill crawling up and down his spine. Not that he’d ever admit it aloud, but it did slam a lance of fear into his gut, if only for a moment.

“Well, we didn’t. And because of that, you wanted to sit there and die. Do you have _any_ idea how much that pisses me off? Just—just to sit there and do _nothing_ and just _die_? What the hell is wrong with you? If you were bred to be a fighter, then that means fighting _everything_ , not just other pokémon, doesn’t it?”

“You don’t understand,” he muttered, turning to avoid her stare.

“Humour me.”

That alone both caught him off guard and didn’t surprise him. The juxtaposition of the response had him, for once, floundering for a feasible response. He consented to blame his untimely response on the medication addling with his headspace.

“Some pokémon…” he paused, trying to find a way to word things properly. “Some pokémon can…they can think of possibilities. Abstractions. Outside the box. They can…”

Words momentarily failed him and he choked on his poorly concocted explanation before realization dawned on him.

“If you hadn’t been able to get here as fast, would you have still thought you could have gotten me here alive?”

“I sure as hell would’ve tried,” Lupin responded, giving him a puzzled look. “And?”

“I didn’t. I didn’t believe you could. I didn’t believe I would make it, so I was resigned to believe I would die. Why struggle and make my last moments more painful than they already were, to believe in something when it’d only be in vain? What was the point in _hoping_ for something that _seemed_ impossible?”

“So you just chose to lie down and die? When the going gets tough, you just give up? That’s a pretty shitty excuse.” She spluttered indignantly, her features darkening. “Are you going to do this same damned routine if it gets too tough when you go on your journey?”

He winced at her blunt words, feeling them hurt worse than he was willing to admit because he knew that she was right, and he hated that she was. He could see the oncoming storm building up, had seen it for some time, but he quickly backpedaled, hoping to dissipate the situation’s tension and salvage it.

“Did you think I wanted to die?”

“You sure as hell were acting like it.”

“ _Accepting_ death for what it is and _wanting_ to die are two separate things. I _didn’t_ _want_ to die, but I _didn’t_ _believe_ there were any other options, given how far away from help we were. Could you smell any other trainers close by us, or a settlement, or even a home within our area?”

She was silent on that, although he could see the next comment already lining itself up, already waiting on the edge of her teeth. He pressed on, not giving her the chance.

“I didn’t want to die,” he stressed. “But given the circumstances…I didn’t exactly see you running over half a day’s journey to the nearest center before I did. I didn’t…I _couldn’t_ see it. I’m—I’m still accepting that you made it here in time. Even if you couldn’t do that, you still…you would have tried to do so, wouldn’t you?”

It still boggled him how she could press on and defy what would have been an inevitable fate. No pokémon wanted to be poisoned, paralyzed, or burned, or even drained dry of blood or lose a limb. No pokémon wanted to die, not in the wild and certainly not while in the care of a trainer. The instinct to survive was instilled in every living being, some stronger than others. But nature was cruel; his parents infused that credence in him and his nest-mates, even if they hadn’t been of the wild, they still accepted and knew that to be the truth. Nature was not kind. It did not weep or take pity on those who fell by her devices and evolutions, the very edges that made predator compete with prey and vice versa.

And yet, humans had the innovation to defy those rules. They weren’t always successful, but they pushed forward in the face of diversity, laughed in the face of a challenge and tackled it down until it either yielded or they did. They saw the “ _what if_ ” and the “ _what could be_ ” scenarios, always breaking boundaries and pushing limits. It wasn’t completely absurd that he couldn’t identify similar veins of thought; it was simply harder for him and his ilk to think outside the box, difficult even. But it was this feature that was what attracted him to the battlefield. What could a trainer do to help him reach his full potential, one that he’d never see if he were a wild pokémon? How could they polish him to be a finely-tuned fighter and battling companion? He personally couldn’t see that, not beyond the idea of being with a trainer one day traveling the world and fighting to get better.

Yet, he knew that death lurked on the fringes of that life choice, it was a force of nature that loomed, a fearful dark predator that snapped up both the unsuspecting and prepared alike. Those Spinarak and their mother Ariados had been that predator the other night, ready to snatch him away. He struggled at first, like any animal would with the will to live. Survival instinct was strong, but it could only do so much in the face of adversity. When he’d felt the sting of fangs and poison piercing into his flesh while he lay helpless in their webbing, he knew it would have been only a matter of time. There had been no help to call for or rely on, save Lupin, and she hadn’t had any antidote on her. Acceptance had been his immediate next step because of that.

He wanted to convey all this, to explain the way he held it in his mind, but words failed him, and he slowly clacked his jaw shut. Exhaustion overcame him again and he carefully turned his head to glance at the door. Nurse Joy was still absent from her appearance. He hoped she’d come soon. He wanted out of here. He turned again to find Lupin pinning him with that intense, mismatched gaze of hers again. Time and again, ever since the full moon, he’d see the other face with that furry snout and glinting, sharp teeth and yellow eyes glowing in the firelight. A predator not of this world, full of human intelligence and a beast’s instinct.

He’d heard of many pokémon capable of human-like intelligence in his time at the lab, from the professor’s studies. Pokémon that could grasp abstract concepts and lateral thinking, with a sharp learning curve that gave them an edge over others; they were one of a kind. It was this facet his kind as a whole generally lacked rather sorely, especially the wild ones. They relied on brute force to crush foes and annihilate trespassers. Trained ones of his kind had a better grasp of things, a worldly outlook, and could accept further thinking than feral predecessors.

But this was different. She was an enigma, something that wore a very human skin with some very beastly instincts hiding under the surface. He wasn’t sure anymore if this was a good or bad thing now. On the one paw, she hadn’t harmed him—only scared him a little, admittedly—the night she’d changed. She’d even used her fleet feet to spur them faster toward a town that could help him, a feature he quickly surmised as a natural athletic gift to her…well, whatever she was.

On the other paw…what if that fell away at the drop of a hat?

She stared at him, her gaze intense and her face unreadable. He stared back just the same, unsure of how to continue, how to explain it in full. She slowly crossed her arms loosely over her abdomen in the same manner they had been when she’d slept, a frown finally pulling at her lips.

“You’re full of shit beyond your years, ya know that?” She finally said, sighing.

“And _you_ are empty of anything despite yours,” he retaliated.

She smirked, and he took it as a good sign. A few weeks ago, she would have snapped at him. Hell, she would have done so last week, even. But now, she seemed less inclined to bark and snarl about his words, just as he felt less prone to baiting her or using sharp words aimed to hurt and disarm.

“Crotchety little thing, ain’t ya?”

His jaws parted to spew another comment, but the door in the corner swung open, as if on cue to interrupt them. He was both disappointed and gladdened at the disruption. Nurse Joy entered the room, her bubblegum pink hair bouncing with every step, her uniform prim and proper and clean as she stepped through on light feet. She smiled at the room’s patrons, blue eyes sweeping over him and then Lupin. The mousy-haired assistant followed behind her, quietly closing the door, a clipboard full of paperwork pressed to her chest.

“Good morning! I apologize for making you two wait so long. I was dealing with a few last minute arrivals.” Nurse Joy beamed, looking rather chipper before she nodded to Totodile. “I’m glad to see that you’re awake. We were beginning to worry.” She quickly established herself over the machines to check the various bits of data they were projecting, nodding satisfactorily as she went before coming to exam him. “You got here just in time. That Spinarak poison must have been terrible to endure. Did Kara tell you about reporting the encounter to the police station?”

She looked to Lupin briefly, before continuing to remove the bandages on his neck to probe ever so gently at the sensitive and inflamed tissue on Totodile’s neck. He winced in spite of himself and the kneejerk reaction to twist and snap kept boiling up at each poke. He allowed her to do her job, however, and after a few moments of enduring everything, she was finished and rerolling a fresh swath of bandages around his neck.

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, she did. Said it was a sort of an ongoing local problem.”

“Yes, it is. Not entirely local, but close. There are large populations of bug-type pokémon in the surrounding forests, and several species are very poisonous.” The prodding hands removed themselves and Totodile relaxed slightly. His neck ached and throbbed. Nurse Joy moved to a table with various bits of medical paraphernalia such as bandages, cotton balls and cotton swabs. “He’s going to experience some discharge for about a week and it might get uncomfortable. There’ll be stiffness and soreness in his neck at the site of the bite, but the swelling should go down in the next day or so. You’ll need to cover the affected area for the day, let it air out at night. We’ve cycled out the poison from his system with antidote, but he’ll need one more dose before the end of the day and he should be good to go.”

Nurse Joy nodded over her shoulder, collecting things from cabinets above the table. Kara moved to Lupin, offering the clipboard. “Discharge paperwork as well as his prescription. He’ll need to take it easy for the next few days, so he can heal up. No battling. If you can manage it, let him soak in some water at the end of the day for at least a half hour, minimum. Water helps rejuvenate his species.”

“We can get that medication over the counter from any pokémart,” Totodile muttered derisively, but Lupin only nodded and mumbled a thanks as she skimmed the paperwork and signed it. She stuffed the prescription in her coat pocket and stood, stretching. Totodile winced when he heard the audible cracks her back made. Nurse Joy returned to the group with a paper bag, offering it to Lupin.

“Bandages and ointment for when it has to be covered. The ones he has right now should suffice until they need to be changed.”

Kara moved over to Totodile and began undoing the sensors that he hadn’t even noticed that were attached to his body. She was careful and studious of where she touched him, and he was grateful for the gentle touch. He, however, kept a wary eye on Lupin as Nurse Joy gave terse instructions on his care, emphasizing the vitality and jiggling the bag in her hand before handing it over.

Then the way was free between the two of them. She hesitated, looking almost abashed, uncertain. Her hands were fidgeting at her sides, as though they didn’t quite know what to do with themselves, something he was sure she wasn’t paying much mind to. Then she slowly approached, offering them to him.

“You…ready to go?”

He stared at them, noticing for the first time the minute scars and burns here there on her fingers, the pads of her hands, the backs of them. They were old, he was sure, made from everyday tasks, accidental mishaps. He brought his gaze back to her face, studying it. The one there, across the bridge of her nose and down her right cheek…that one looked deliberate and he briefly wondered why anyone would do such a thing.

_And she can’t even remember who did it. Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise,_ he thought. For once, he felt a pang of sympathy when he remembered that her entire body had been covered in the slick scars, the pale flesh bare of any fur and standing out starkly against her fuzzy form.

He finally nodded, waddling sluggishly toward her outstretched hands at the edge of the bedding. It hurt to push up to his hind legs, but he endured the small amount of pain for the few seconds he needed. She did the rest, scooping him up under his arms and carefully pulling him against her shoulder, one arm under his back legs, the other across his back. It was…nice. Comfortable. He let a gush of air escape his nostrils as he laid his weary head against her shoulder, relaxing into her grip. His limbs were leaden weights and it was a relief to simply not move and have someone else do the work. He let his eyes close, lulled by the steps Lupin took as she left the room after gathering her things. He was asleep before she even stepped out the door of his recovery room.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

After finished with the pharmacy, Lupin stopped by the video chat consoles, Totodile was still draped across her shoulder, fast asleep. The stray and idle thought of, _you just woke up_ , came flitting through, but was quickly quelled when she remembered he was still recovering. He was stable, and that much was good. When she’d felt him shivering so violently in her arms the last half hour or so before Catallia City, it terrified her enough to put in a last burst of adrenaline into her system to keep going. By the time she came stumbling into the Pokémon Center’s lobby, her legs were a quivering mess, barely able to hold her up. Everything ached and throbbed, her hips, knees and ankles on fire as everything settled after she stopped. The medical staff had sprung into action, taking the deathly still and limp Totodile from her, shouting medical jargon too quickly for her to follow. The rest of the night did not pass quickly or easily enough. She had been too exhausted to do much other than sit in the lobby, yet too wired with gut-wrenching anxiety to sleep.

She had been riddled with it ever since, waiting for updates, progress, any scrap of information until she could be cleared to see him. She had completely forgotten to call Phillip or the professor to update them on the situation. She decided that she couldn’t do without giving them the courtesy, now that things had calmed down.

She stared at the inert screen with its glowing background, waiting with instructions on how to use it. She scanned them, then went through the steps to place a call. A telephone icon sprung up on the screen, the words “ _Connecting, please wait_ ” flashing below as speakers from the terminal projected a ring every few seconds.

“ _Call connected_ ” seared across her screen seconds before the screen cut and showed Phillip’s face front and center, the lab presenting a mellow background. She could see some of the pokémon playing a friendly game of tag in a playpen just behind him.

“Oh, Lupin! So glad you called, I was getting worried. How are things going, did you meet Mr. Pokémon?”

She hesitated, taking the precious few seconds to shift Totodile a little against her shoulder. Phillip’s smile faded, his attention drawn to the inactive pokémon slumped against her.

“Is everything all right? What happened?”

She took a breath, steeling herself before she dove into it, slowly and halting at first, before it smoothed in transition near the end. The meeting had gone fine, she noted, starting with a good point, before diving into the encounter with the Spinarak and the Ariados after the rains had stopped. She had to omit how far she really had been from Catallia as well as the real manner in which she’d scared the spiders away, but for the most part, she remained as honest as she could on the accounts. Phillip listened with rapt attention, not entirely responsive at first. A wave of disbelief had slowly covered his face as she had regaled on the events. When she finished, she fell silent, and hadn’t realized she’d been stroking Totodile’s backside until that moment. Hurriedly, she dropped her hand and tucked it under him to relieve her other one.

“That…that…wow. You’re…you were very lucky,” he finally breathed out. “Legendaries above, you were _really_ lucky. And-and he’s okay? Nurse Joy said he’d be fine?”

“Just a little sore in his neck for the next few days. No battling,” she nodded. _Not that we’ve done much of that at all to start with._

Phillip expelled a long sigh of relief and ran a hand through his hair. “Oh, thank goodness. You’re behind schedule, but…well, all for the better. The professor is too, so there are no worries about that.” He smiled reassuringly. “Just…get here in one piece, the both of you.”

The conversation dwindled after that with miniscule updates, and a few minutes later, she was hanging up. The screen blanked out and went back to its casual menu one. Lupin sighed, feeling like that was one less thing on her plate. Without much else business to take care of in the Pokémon Center, she took her leave after gaining directions to the police station. She ended up walking three blocks before finding it. Inside, she was assaulted by a myriad of scents that were only just marginally better than the scent of hospital bleach and antiseptic. But only just.

A front desk clerk looked up from his work and squinted at Lupin before putting a pair of glasses onto the bridge of his nose. He leaned back, no longer squinting and he asked, “Can I help you?”

The lobby was empty save two other bodies sitting in a row of chairs against the wall to her left. Shifting Totodile to her other shoulder, she nodded.

“Yes, I, uh, I was advised by the medical providers over at the Pokémon Center to…to…”

The clerk was leaning over to the side, staring at Totodile. He squinted again at him.

“Those damned Spinarak and Ariados, I’m guessing?”

Lupin expelled a breath noisily through her lips and nodded.

The clerk sighed even louder, already reaching toward a paper rack on his desk. “Here. Fill out this paperwork. After it gets filed, we’ll get back to you in three days—”

“ _Three days_?”

The officer raised a brow. “Traveling trainer? You got the time to linger in Catallia, don’t you?”

“No, I don’t. I’m on an errand for Professor Elm. Here, I have…hold on.” She unhitched a shoulder strap from her pack and swung it around to her front, digging into a pocket to produce the ID Professor Elm had gotten her. Handing it to the officer, he took his glasses off and squinted once again, lips pulling into a frown.

“Hmm. I guess that this might change things. Hold on, let me talk to my superior real quick, see what she has to say. Maybe we can rush this processing step.”

“Wait, why does this paperwork need a processing delay, anyway?”

The officer, halfway out of his seat, sighed. “Well, the thing is, this is the season we need to draw up a paper trail in order to get the Rangers involved for another forest sweep. We can’t just call them up on a hunch, sweep through the forest and end up with no evidence of Ariados and her nest residing in it. We’ve had incidents in the past and now we need to back our reasons for having them come all the way out here to help.” He motioned to the paperwork. “Hence, this. We can’t afford to rush things all the time, and we need time to review the paperwork itself before we forward this to the Rangers. If we can speed this up, we can let you on your way by the end of the day.”

She sighed as he handed her ID back. “Another day here…great.”

_I guess it’s a good thing the professor is delayed, then._

He gave her a sympathetic smile. “Sorry. Just the nature of the beast. I’ll be right back. Spinner, c’mon. Let’s go,” he said, glancing upward. Something dropped down from the ceiling, a bright streak falling by a spindly thread of webbing, and it scuttled over to the officer’s shoulder. Lupin jumped back, her tail bristling under her coat. The officer chuckled at Lupin’s reaction, reaching up to pet the green and black spider on his shoulder. “Sorry about that. Spinner likes doing that for the shock factor. He’s a naughty little guy like that.”

“You guys _use_ those little monsters?” Lupin gaped, staring at the green and black spider with suspicion and disgust.

He frowned at her, looking troubled. “Monsters? They’re not monsters. You just had a bad run in with some feral Spinarak. It’s unfortunate, but it happens. Plus, we’ve been using Spinarak in Catallia for years now. Growlithe are usually the norm for officers but here, it’s tradition for us.”

Lupin stared, uncertain and nervous at the little spider. It looked at her with beady black eyes, before lifting its back end. On its abdomen, a comical face was patterned out on it. It showed a smiley face at the angle it presented to her. Lupin remained unconvinced, but took the paperwork regardless, her eyes never leaving the spider.

“I’ll just…fill this out while you go and talk it out with your boss.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Taking a clipboard he slid across the desk before disappearing, Lupin retreated to an empty seat, staring over the forms she was given. She wanted a shower. She wanted a nap. She hadn’t had a proper meal in the last few days, and what little she’d had hadn’t been quite enough to fill her up. She started scribbling in what information she could, feeling more and more awkward the more personal the information got. Address, pokégear number, trainer ID number, email address…

By the time the officer had come back, she only had the parts she could fill out finished. Then she had to explain her situation, and the longer she tried, the more stilted and difficult it got. Lupin finally ended on the note of, “If you just…call Phillip—the professor’s main aide—he can vouch for me. Please. I know how it sounds, but…I was examined by Ms. Joan from Cherrygrove, she came out to the lab to help a few weeks ago. The police have a record of the incident too.”

“Whoa, whoa, calm down. Easy, there. I’m not going to arrest you, if that’s what you think. We already called up the lab to confirm who you were. Mr. Sykes confirmed who you were, said you just called from the center about twenty or so minutes ago.” He smiled disarmingly, taking the clipboard. “My superior’s already approved of getting this pushed through today. We just need you to put this on record officially.”

“That…that isn’t officially?”

“Video records. They go with the paperwork when we forward it to the Rangers. Just a few questions to confirm and follow up on your encounter, and then you’re free to go.”

That sounded simple enough, she reasoned. She nodded, conceding to follow him.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“How long was I out for?”

“A few good hours. Here, lemme give you that medicine they had me get before you eat.”

Lupin gently pulled Totodile into her lap, the medicine bottle in her hand. He sighed, leaning his head on her knee as she injected the plunger with a soft hiss into the softer bits of his scales. Totodile winced, hissing at the brief blossom of fire as the medicine wormed its way into his system.

“Ow.”

“Sorry. At least that’s the only batch you need. And now, the bandages. They said to let it air out at night. I already got a bath for you so you can soak.”

He was quiet as her hands carefully began to unwrap said bandages from his neck. The sensitive tissue throbbed, the cool air kissing the wounded area.

“Why’re you suddenly being so nice to me?”

The inquiry threw her off, he could tell from her stilted silence. Her hands froze, and he glanced up at her to see her expression unreadable. And yet, her eyes were studying him just as intently. Then she was back in motion again, putting aside the bandages on the bed, and picking him up to carry him to the bathroom.

“You’ve been a pain in my ass since the day I met you, but I’m not heartless enough to be uncaring. I mean…I do care. If I didn’t, you’d be in a more questionable condition right about now.”

“You don’t call this questionable?”

“Point taken,” she sighed. They passed through the bathroom door and she immediately turned to the small tub. The water she laid him in was warm and he settled comfortably in it and already, he could feel himself feeling much better. The ache in his neck lessened considerably. Lupin sat on the toilet after putting the lid down to make an impromptu seat. “But I still stand by what I said. Look. If I didn’t care, do you think I would’ve taken you away from every fight you’ve been trying to get into? Pokémon trainer battles, I can’t really do that, I’m not really a trainer. But wild pokémon are a different story. You can defend yourself against them, even if you don’t have a license. That’s an exception to a rule, as long as it’s not instigated by you.”

“You’ve been reading up on these things,” he said, surprised. She nodded.

“But if I didn’t care…I would’ve let you go all out and not bother on making sure you were healthy to keep going. Or I would have done a dick move and released you. Or gave you away to someone and gone on my own way. Anything. It…it would’ve been different if I didn’t care. And I do, I just…took a little longer…to actually show it and for that, I…I’m sorry. I know I’m—difficult. It’s just…I don’t know, I’m…still trying to figure things out.”

“That’s one way of putting it,” he commented quietly. He studied her for a moment, considering. “But I suppose you’re right…things would be different. And…I didn’t make it any easier on you. I’m not much better.”

“Well, at least you’re getting a taste of what you’ll have to expect when you’re out traveling with…well, whoever you end up being a friend with. You’re a tough little bastard. I mean it, too. The nurse at the center said most victims your size, they don’t make it within the first hour of being bitten. You held out for at least three—I kinda had to omit where we were, exactly, but still. _Three_ hours. You might not look at it this way or at it like this right now, but you got heart.”

She smiled and for once, he didn’t conceive the image of that other face of hers over it. She looked nice when she smiled, scar and all. And she wasn’t hiding half her skull with that hat of hers either. He rather liked her without it.

The moment was there and gone again in an instant, however, when the smile fell away and she sighed, standing. “I’ll let you soak for a little. Just call me when you want to get out.”

“It might be a while,” he warned. He was feeling quite cozy, in fact.

“That’s okay. I can wait around for room service, then.”

“Can you get me some food, please? I’m…I’m really hungry.”

She smiled again. He liked it better when she smiled, he realized.

Lupin nodded, pausing at the door. “Sure. Just sit tight.”

Then she was gone and he stared at the doorway for several long minutes before he angled his tail like a rudder to start swimming in circles. How thoughtful of her. She’d filled it up enough so he could do this.

Maybe she wasn’t as bad as he’d thought she was.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any words or kudos are appreciated, my lovely readers, but as always, it's an optional decision. :P


	12. Fight

**Chapter Eleven:  
Fight**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a robot. Robots are cool. Green Lantern fought a robot. I love Green Lantern. I love pie. Mmmmmm, pie. Wait why am I thinking about pie? I'm supposed to be thinking about something else. Does it rhyme with pie? Fly, by, cry, die, pie? Pie! No. Pie, Green Lantern, Fighting robot, fighting machine, me. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine.”  
_ **-Reese, “ _Malcolm in the Middle_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“I _can_ walk, you know.”

“I know. I kinda like having you on my shoulders now, though.”

A sigh sounded off against her hat and what little fur from her ear that couldn’t be hidden tickled under the gush of air. It made her ears twitch in response. Totodile settled more comfortably on her shoulders, hunkering down for the long haul. He gazed up at the moderately sized business buildings they were passing through to reach the end of Cherrygrove with a half-lidded, bored expression in his eyes. There was warmth there, however, one that reflected in his tone.

“You spoil me.”

“Just until we get back to the lab. Then you can hate and avoid me all you like for not letting you walk.”

“I’m not an invalid.”

“I prefer to think of you as a trouble-seeking magnet. I’d rather not have a repeat of the Mankey Incident.”

“…point taken. I still stand by my statement, however.”

“Troublemaker.”

“I had everything under control,” he muttered derisively back. Lupin sighed.

“Yes, and if things hadn’t gone so _swimmingly_ , I would have been caught with no trainer’s license. Kids are easier to give a warning to. A thirty-something year old, though? No. I prefer to continue not knowing what the inside of a jail cell looks like, thank you.”

“You act as though you’re expecting a cop to pop around the corner in the middle of a battle. As long as we don’t cause property damage, I find that scenario highly unlikely. You can relax.”

Totodile paused, tilting his head. She felt a little unnerved at the unblinking stare he had pinned her with.

“Unless, that’s not the _only_ thing you’re worried about.”

“What a _genius_ you are.”

“I have my moments. Thank you.” He replied dryly, snorting. “Relax. You have some immunity protecting you while under the professor’s wing, so to speak. As long as you maintain your junior assistant license, you have authority to act in the professor’s stead. Not as fully as Phillip, but well…can’t win them all. Most people will give you some leeway. It worked in Catallia.”

“Riiight…”

Cherrygrove was in full swing at the moment, oblivious to the worries of the two travelers. People bustled about, some smelling of fresh brine, others of fragrant flowers and herbs. Totodile lifted himself up higher on Lupin’s shoulders, practically balancing on his hind legs and tail as he sniffed the air with a hungry sheen to his eyes as he searched the bobbing heads around them.

“I smell fresh fish!”

“Well, Cherrygrove is a small port city, it doesn’t surprise me you smell fish.”

“Can we get some fresh salmon? Or maybe some crawfish or some tuna. Or maybe some crabs. Can we get some of that? I hear it’s _really_ tender.”

He shivered pleasantly against her and she reached up to lower him back down. “Calm down. Jeez. Look, we’re heading out of town, we don’t have time to double back to get you a snack.”

He slumped with a disgruntled huff, grumbling under his breath. Lupin flicked the side of his crooked snout and he hissed.

“We’re getting an early start for a reason. We wanna get to the professor’s by the end of tomorrow, so we gotta go now. Got it?”

“Yes, all right…fun killer. You kill my fun. My fun was eating fish.”

“I’m sure you’ll live well enough on the canned meat I got you.”

“Bah. Chemically treated tripe. It pales in comparison to fresh meat.”

She huffed a few quiet laughs and reached back up to pat his hard skull and he leaned into the touch. She gave him a few scratches in return. “We’ll get you your fresh meat when we get back to the lab, okay? Promise.”

“I’d hold you to your word, but I’m afraid you might conveniently forget it.”

“Oh, _wow_. Cheap shots, really? Okay, I’ll remember that later.”

Totodile laughed at that. He slid back along her shoulder, a scaly blue scarf dotted with spiny crimson plates that were looking quite uninviting. Other trainers and denizens passed them by, their pokémon either strolling beside, flying above, or riding atop their humans. No one paid them much mind, except for perhaps a young child at a crosswalk, who looked at Totodile with the reverence of something holy that had just crossed his path. Totodile was the first to notice and gave the boy a crooked grin and another rattling laugh. Lupin, only noting the last of the exchange, smiled when she saw him staring. The boy hurriedly buried his face in his mother’s side, but his eyes were smiling at her when he peeped shyly back up at her.

The outskirts of the city were fringed with little houses and cottages that slowly gave way to rolling hills and gentle, sloping fields and a clear sky above them. The forest lay beyond, a green hazy line on the horizon that slowly grew with definition as they left the city proper. The renewed scent of the salty ocean blew towards them on a light breeze, heady and invigorating. It carried along with them as they headed onto the main road that led back to New Bark Town, mixing with the earthy wooded fragrance of the forest they were slowly closing in on. The city wasn’t even out of their sight, however, when the wind changed and a new scent carried on it.

Lupin sighed as she adjusted her hat a little more securely on her head and did the same with her coat for good measure. People stared, she knew they did. She’s already caught them doing so. But none have, so far, said a thing about the bushy tail that was not quite so easily hidden by her coat. She hoped she could safely assume that they believed it to be a clip-on for the time being. An eccentricity, to be sure, but it seemed somewhat acceptable so far.

“I smell Chikorita. Can you? That herby smell she’s always covered in, can you smell it?”

She could indeed, and it had taken her a few moments to recognize the earthy scent of the grass pokémon. Lupin could hear the faint longing and crooning melancholy rolling in between the lines of his words and it carried in the tone of his voice. She knew that while he did want to be back at the lab, at the same time, he didn’t want to return there. He wanted to stay on the road and his lethargy in returning was becoming more present with each passing step that heralded them closer to their destination. To have some shred of evidence that one of the others had been picked up before him must have been disheartening. He slumped further against her shoulder, and by now she had a good idea of his body language to know he was sliding into that mental rut once more.

The distance was eaten away as they continued, and soon the owner of the new scent mark came into view. He was young, perhaps in his late teens, sporting a head full of shocking red hair that leveled out to his shoulders. His outfit was simple, but uniform for traveling, as was the pack he carried. Totodile adjusted himself on her shoulder, stirring for the first time since they’d left Cherrygrove.

“She’s not out…”

“Doesn’t look like it,” Lupin concurred, noting his dejected tone. The glint from the midmorning sun on the approaching trainer’s belt told her that the little pokémon was most likely nestled in her pokéball. A very small part of her was relieved. She didn’t want to deal with a shaking, scared pokémon staring at her like she was a harbinger of death. At least in the cities, most of the pokémon seemed unfazed by her. It was a relief of scenery compared to the lab’s confined spaces and sheltered pokémon.

Even from the distance, she could tell the trainer was in a hurry. It wasn’t too long before they were within distance to properly greet one another. Lupin gave a curt nod, although the redheaded young man didn’t return the gesture. He all but glared at her, his gaze intense and hard. She noticed off the bat his eyes were a light grey, but the study was interrupted when she noticed him sneering at her, just as she was getting ready to pass him by. He stopped short, eyes locked on her and she hesitated on continuing. Her reluctance gave him leeway to speak, as his eyes slid to Totodile resting on her shoulders.

“Well, well. If I’m to guess, you got that pokémon at Professor Elm’s laboratory.”

Lupin’s muscles locked up at the observation and she pursed her lips, yet she nodded all the same. It was technically true. She continued to study him in return, feeling like she’s seen this boy before, but she couldn’t pin down where. Some town, maybe, on her way to Mr. Pokémon’s home, perhaps?

_But he was coming from New Bark Town_ , she corrected herself. She eyed the pokéball attached on his belt, recognizing the little leaf motif engraved on its front, right above the release button. How could she know him? She couldn’t, no way. Her eyes flicked to meet his again.

“And you must have gotten yours from him as well,” she replied in kind, nodding to the pokéball. “Chikorita, right?”

He gave an ugly snort, his hands resting on his hips now, his attention fully on her.

“Of course. And she can take on that wimpy little reptile any day of the week. Is it too lazy to walk on its own?” He smirked a bit, fingers brushing against the pokéball on his belt now, as though in contemplation.

Lupin bristled, but didn’t take the bait. She knew what he was trying to do. She wasn’t falling for it.

“Great, well, have fun with her, and good luck I guess. See ya,” she replied in a clipped tone. She gave a mocking salute as she turned to continue on her way. Her ears gave a massive twitch under her hat at the sound of a pokéball releasing energy and suddenly, something was yanking her back by the arm. It squeezed tight and refused to let go, forcing her to pivot. Totodile growled deep in his chest and snarled. Chikorita was out, a pair of thin, reedy vines sprouting from the base of her neck and wrapped around the werewolf’s arm. Despite the rank scent of fear that was mixing with her usually pleasant herby smell, she had followed a silent order to attack. The vines wrapped tighter around her arm. Lupin dug her heels into the ground in response. The redheaded young man still had that smarmy leer on his face and in that instant, Lupin came to one conclusion: she preferred Totodile’s smugness to this kid’s.

“I want to see just how pathetic you lot are. I challenge you to a battle.”

“Sorry, but I’m not into battling. Now tell her to—no, fuck this, _let_ _go_ , Chikorita. I mean it!” Lupin snapped, directing her words to the grass pokémon. Chikorita stared her down, terror and determination shining in those red eyes, but she refused to adhere to the order. The redhead’s smirk widened, if it were possible.

“You’re not going anywhere until I beat your pokémon, so you might as well dump that scaly sack of meat and get it over with.”

Totodile hissed menacingly, a throaty growl building up. Lupin gritted her teeth, the idea of unleashing a few sparks to teach this kid a good lesson sorely tempting. Totodile leapt in before she could decide, snapping his jaws shut on the vines holding Lupin’s arm immobile. Chikorita let out a nearly ear-piercing shriek of pain, and the hold on the woman’s arm released, retreating as soon as Totodile released and landed nimbly on the ground. He hissed at the grass pokémon, rising up to his hind legs with his mouth gaping open in a threatening display. Chikorita whimpered, backing up toward her trainer, but instead of being scooped up or checked up on, he gave her shove forward with his foot.

“Get back in there, I didn’t say you were done.”

Lupin bristled. It struck a sudden nerve with her at the sight of Chikorita’s treatment and she felt abashed at her previous thought using her fire to scare her. She’d be no better if she’d done so, she realized.

“What in the hell is wrong with you? Don’t kick her, you slimy jerk!”

A part of her wanted to scoop the grass pokémon up and snatch that pokéball out of the redhead’s hand and take her back to the lab. Did Professor Elm know what kind of person he’d given her to? Did they do background checks on potential new trainers, or at least a personality test? Something to weed out potential abusers, at the very least.

“I’ll do what I want with her. She’s _my_ pokémon. Chikorita, vine whip!”

A torrential gush of water poured from Totodile’s maw, canceling out the skinny vines from attacking again. It doused the grass pokémon and sent her spinning across the dirt road, spluttering and coughing. The redhead’s grin faded and a thunderous expression replaced it. He jerked his head impatiently toward Chikorita and barked, “Get back up! Razor leaf!”

“Hey, I’m not battling here, so knock it off!”

“Oh, really? I’d say your Totodile is ready and willing. Not that it matters. I have type advantage. Grass types overwhelm water types any day of the week. There’s no way I’d lose to a weakling like you.”

That prickling, indignant feeling overcame her again, souring her stomach. It made her want to give in to the temptation to unleash a firestorm as a distraction. She quelled the enticing idea, and glanced at Totodile, uncertainty weighing her down. She eyed the flesh around his neck that was still slightly puffy, the ugly little puncture wounds that had finally closed up and healed from where the Spinarak had bitten him. He’d been doing much better in the last few days since they left Catallia City, but he always felt ragged and worn out by the end of the day, even after riding on her shoulders. He tilted his head, glancing at her with one yellow-red eye facing her. He gave her that rattle-laugh, snout tilting into a crooked gator grin.

“Trust me. I have this.”

She opened her mouth to argue back, to make an excuse, but she snapped it shut just as quickly. This was what he’d been bred to do, he always told her. She kept taking him away from potential battles before they’d even started in earnest and managed to get away. Here, their hands were being forced. Even if they could get away, he’d resent her for it. And she knew she’d never forgive herself either. She could see how important this was to him. He wanted to fight.

She nodded to him. It was a short, curt movement, but she saw a fire ignite in those eyes at the reaction, the floodgates opening and allowing him free reign to let loose. He snapped his head forward and opened his jaws, emitting a startlingly low, deep and angry hiss at Chikorita. The sudden change in his behavior toward the grass pokémon was shocking. One moment, he was reminiscing, the next he’s ready to attack.

Chikorita’s body tensed and her lower half lowered, shoulders locking, ready to either push forward or brace for a hit. She let out a snarl of her own. The redhead across the makeshift battleground smirked.

“Hiss and growl all you want, you two are going down. Tackle!”

Chikorita darted forward on quick little feet. Totodile hunkered himself down a little more and at the last moment, ducked out of the way. He gave the grass pokémon a light smack with his tail as he retreated away from her and released another surge of water from his maw. It struck true, hitting Chikorita in her side and sent her flipping over herself across the road. Totodile snorted, waiting tensely as the grass pokémon struggled back to her feet at the behest of her trainer’s snarled shouts.

“Get back up! Use razor leaf!”

Totodile didn’t give her the chance. Just as she had rushed forward moments before, he did the same, splaying his claws and taking a hard swipe at her. She tried to dodge, but he caught her in the flank. She missed most of the damage, but long, thin lies were left in her flank and she limp-hopped away muttering under her breath as she gave Totodile the stink eye. It didn’t take a genius to see she was hurting and looked ready to fold. Lupin pursed her lips and glanced back at Totodile.

“Hey, I think she’s had enough. C’mon back, yeah?”

Her opponent scoffed. “Those are the words of a weakling. Razor leaf.”

A flurry of leaves suddenly flew from the crest of the leaf atop Chikorita’s head, sharp little green darts hurtling toward Totodile. He ducked low to the ground, dodging most, but a few scraped across his backside. He winced, but didn’t move from his spot. Lupin lurched forward, ready to intervene when a pair of those reedy vines came whipping out of nowhere, cracking at her feet. She jumped back, first glaring at Chikorita and then the redhead. He said nothing, but that grim smirk was still on his face.

“Razor leaf again.”

“Dammit, that’s enough, I—!”

“Don’t interfere!”

Her mouth clacked shut as she turned her gaze toward Totodile, stunned at his outburst. He was lifting himself up to his hind legs again, flexing his little paws. Another barrage of leaves skewered past him, some knocking him back but he held his ground, hind paws leaving deep gouges in the ground. Totodile clacked his jaws and she blinked, swearing she saw a flicker of light in his jaws.

“Almost…” he muttered. “One more, dammit. Just one more.”

She furrowed her brow, confused, but jumped when another barrage of those leaves went hurtling toward him. Some struck true and she heard him yowl. Instinct urged her to move forward again, but she was frozen, an outside bystander with no control of her own limbs. It felt different than in the forest with the nest of Spinarak. She couldn’t move, only watch as fine lines of red oozed from the fresh wounds decorating his blue hide. They stood out starkly in contrast, thin red ribbons making oddly placed stripes along his scales.

Her attention was diverted from the wounds, and she saw the light appear again, and she knew she wasn’t seeing things. Her opponent must have seen too. When she looked back at him, his mouth was hinged open in angry astonishment. He shouted a garbled command back at his pokémon, but it came moments too late. Chikorita froze up, realizing what was happening just as late, belatedly preparing for another of her razor leaf attacks. The attack that Totodile had been building up was released and the energy plunged toward the grass pokémon and struck her hard before she could execute her counterattack. It flung her into the air and she flew far before careening back onto the ground. She didn’t move for several seconds, but it seemed to last an eternity. Totodile hissed and let out a menacing growl of victory.

Chikorita finally stirred, struggling to push herself to her feet, only to collapse back onto her side. Lupin finally felt her limbs release from the iron vice grip that held her tight, and she stumbled over to Totodile, carefully checking him over. She gave especial attention to the just recently healed wounds on his neck. He groaned, pushing away at her with his paws.

“Stop smothering me, I’m _fine_ , just get me some potion so we don’t have to go back to the center.”

She hesitated, but nodded all the same and dropped her pack to dig into it, her hand wrapping around the small vial in a side pocket. The sunlight gleamed against the purple and clear flask, the medicinal liquids sloshing about inside. He side-eyed it as she held it parallel to one of the nastier gouge marks on his body.

“Hold still,” she muttered, pressing down on the spray tip. It took a second, but the medicine shot out against the wound, and the reaction was instantaneous. The cut began to close and stitch back together, and while it was still red and raw, it looked better and was no longer bleeding freely. She continued the process until all the wounds were closed and the potion was completely out. Lupin sighed in relief, scratching the side of his head.

“What in the hell was that?”

“Rage. I have to take a few hits, but it helps build up the power behind my own. The more damage I take, the more powerful I can return it in kind. It doesn’t help if I get knocked out before that happens, though.”

“Geez. Scared the hell outta me.”

“You should learn my move set, then. It’d be easier if you had a pokédex and not a bunch of books to lug around...” He eyed her pointedly at this and she sheepishly slung her pack back onto her shoulders.

“Wait, what’s a—”

She stopped herself short at a loud stomp and purposeful huff. She looked up and saw the redhead glaring at her from down the road, his jaw set rigidly in anger. His gaze, for a brief few seconds, settled on Chikorita, who was limping over to him. She passed them by, and gave a nod to Totodile.

“Good battle,” she said. Her eyes slid toward Lupin and she hesitated, then nodded to her as well. “You’re not as bad as I thought you were. You’re…pretty nice.”

Lupin was surprised, but she smiled in thanks. She was already digging in her pack for another potion when the redhead’s voice cut in sharply.

“Chikorita! Get away from those weaklings. We’re going.”

She hesitated, looking torn, before she trotted awkwardly after her trainer. He glowered at her approaching form. “Hmph. What a disappointment. You’re supposed to be _stronger_ than a water-type.”

Lupin opened her mouth to shout at him, but a paw on her arm distracted her. Totodile was observing her with half-lidded eyes, his gaze deceptively lazy looking at first but she saw the ire there as well.

“There’s nothing you can do. He’s her trainer now.”

“But he’s—”

“A jerk, yes. There are plenty of those kinds of trainers, but short of reporting him for abuse—which we haven’t seen—we can’t do much to take Chikorita away. She’s stuck…unfortunately.”

He stared her down and she reluctantly withdrew her hand from her pack, sighing. Quietly, she finished checking him over, especially the area around his neck. It was looking better than the last few days, but he often complained it was sore. She stood at last, dusting her jeans off. “I…guess we should get going, then. We need to make up for our lost time. That jerk threw us off schedule.”

“Not much lost time,” he observed, pausing to look up at her. “Can I ride on your shoulders again?”

She barely heard the question, however, her eyes momentarily drawn to something lying on the ground a few feet away from them. It sat plainly in the middle of the road, and it was clear what it was: an ID card. Lupin could see, as she got closer, that it was the trainer ID for the redhead that had stormed off. She peeked at the name, frowning. Shirubā Noboru. 16 years old, red hair, grey eyes, originating from Kanto, so on and so forth…

_No wonder he’s such a stuck up punk_ , she thought with pursed lips, her eyes focused on the age. So young, he thinks he’s invincible, that he can challenge anyone and no consequence will come of it. He was arrogant and not in the charming way, either. Totodile growled beside her in warning and she looked up to see the redhead—Shirubā—double backing toward them. She motioned to him to clamber onto her shoulder and he complied, agilely sliding up her arm as she stood and turned, heading back for New Bark Town.

She didn’t have time to deal with brats that have an ego problem. She left the ID where she’d found it, refusing to listen to the shouts behind her.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The sight of the lab was a welcome one. Plain and simple, that was what it was in the barest sense. The time on the road, however, felt like a much needed kick in the pants that made her want to keep going. She didn’t want to stay long. She didn’t want to become complacent and cooped up, letting herself wallow in self-pity or woeful what-ifs. She wanted to heed to the advice others had already given her, to go out and find the answers that were obviously not forthcoming to her.

“You’re thinking of leaving again, aren’t you?”

The voice in her ear startled her out of her churning thoughts. She didn’t answer at first, mulling over how to answer that question. Yes, she wanted to go back out again, but she didn’t know when. No, she didn’t really want to, but she had to. She had slipped into the police station at Cherrygrove last night before heading to the center for a room, to see if they’d had any leads. She’d ended up waiting nearly forty-five minutes before they got back to her, and it had been a disappointment as well as a waste of time. There had been no changes, no missing persons reports regarding her, and no leads to her identity.

“Yeah, thinking about it,” she finally settled for. Totodile shifted a bit on her shoulder, adjusting himself into a more comfortable position. He steadied himself, quiet for a moment.

“You know the professor isn’t going to let you go alone, right?”

“…I know.”

“Then I hope you don’t mind if I stick around for a little longer,” he said with one of his rattle-laughs. She found enough of it in her to smile.

“I suppose I don’t have much of a choice. It’s either you or I wrestle a feral pokémon with my bare hands.”

“I’ll bet on you…most days. I’m not sure you’d have a fair fight against an Ursaring, however.”

“A what?”

“Big giant bear of doom that lives in the mountains surrounding Blackthorn City just north of here. I’ve heard horror stories from my mother and father.”

That gave her pause. “You said you and your siblings were bred for battle…are you part of some sort of breeder’s program?”

“Something along those lines. The owners, they pick out the best in our nests. Some are given to trainers ready to go and in the area. Others, like myself, are sent to starter pokémon programs. Since we’re native to Johto, we get sent to Professor Elm. Just like Squirtle are part of Kanto, for example, they get sent to Professor Oak. I’m not too sure about the other regions, though. I do know one of us gets sent every six or so months. Usually by then, the last one gets picked up and the next is alone.”

Totodile adjusted himself again. “My older brother, he was still there when I got to the lab, almost six months ago now. He was picked up a week after I’d arrived. It helps the professor have a wider range of subjects to study from versus a stagnant one.”

“Did you have a name before coming here?”

She saw him shift his head so he was looking at her more properly.

“You wouldn’t be able to pronounce it in your tongue,” he scoffed.

“Humour me.”

He watched her for a few moments longer and that unblinking reptilian gaze bore into hers. It made her uncomfortable as the silence dragged on before he slid out of her peripheral. The silence pursued for a few seconds longer before he let out a low trill that evolved into a purr, squeak, and growl, then was topped off by a long hiss at the end.

She stopped dead in her tracks, amazed and stunned by the vocal range he emitted. She stood stock still for what felt the longest minute in her life and she could just feel the smugness radiated off of the little blue gator.

“…I’m not even going to try and pronounce that. Do you have something more…translatable?”

“Why?” He sounded suspicious now, but also curious.

“I’m not calling you ‘Totodile’. That’s the name of your species. That’s like me getting a dog and naming it ‘Dog’.”

“Point taken,” he muttered back, falling silent again. “The-Tide-That-Flows-Strong. It’s the closest translation we can make of it into your language.”

“Your name isn’t really a name,” she pointed out and he snorted against her cheek.

“Maybe not to you, but to us, it’s a perfect way of separating ourselves. My father is The-Teeth-That-Break-Stone and my mother is known as The-Bones-That-Shatter-All.”

Lupin clucked her tongue. “Kind of…intimidating sounding.”

“That’s the point. A boastful name tends to drive off potential challengers.”

“I’m not calling you…Tide-Flows-whatever.” She frowned, pausing just outside the lab’s doors. “What about Riptide?”

He made a disgruntled noise. “You insult me by sullying my name.”

“I can’t exactly pronounce your actual name and that tide flowing name is too long. Riptide is close enough, ain’t it?”

Another discontented sound in her ear, before it devolved into a long sigh. “I suppose it’s… _acceptable_ , considering your uncultured tongue can’t pronounce my given name. Hmmm. Riptide.” A pause. “I’m sure it’ll grow on me.”

“Eventually,” she agreed with a nod and a wry smile. She pushed the door open, the faint smile still on her face. “Like a fungus.”

“The crustiest fungus that exists, I’m sure.”

His rattle-laugh died almost as quickly as it had started and she stopped short herself, going so far as to freeze on the spot. The lab was occupied, and it wasn’t by its usual patrons of pokémon, professor and lab assistant. Three officers garbed in uniform stood with the professor, but whatever conversation they’d been having cut short and all eyes landed on the two of them. There was a brief, awkward moment of silence that passed between them, quickly filling the void.

Riptide broke it by bumping his jaw into her temple.

“…well, it was nice knowing you. Be sure to write when you get to the big house.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	13. Train

**Chapter Twelve:** **Train**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_"What do you suggest?"_  
_"I'm thinking…"_  
_"Don't strain yourself."  
_ **-Bela and Dean, " _Supernatural_ "**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"I _still_ can't believe that monumental jackass just _stole_ Chikorita. I knew something didn't smell right. I hope the police catch him…"

"People steal pokémon. It happens. It's unfortunate, but it happens. Just like when a person gets robbed or…or killed. Things aren't perfect."

"Is it a regular occurrence? The pokémon stealing, I mean."

"Not normally. But desperate people tend to be the usual offenders. It mostly stems from wanting stronger pokémon right from the get go and not wanting to put in the effort or time to train them. Rookies who want dragons and have no way to control them, for example, tend to get injured more. Everyone knows that dragon types are among the strongest out there. That doesn't mean they don't have weaknesses, they have type disadvantages just like the rest of us, but dragon types are very powerful and take a lot of time, care, and patience to raise. Sometimes it can take _years_ to cultivate them to their fullest potential."

"Like…the Champion for the Indigo Plateau, Lance."

"Exactly. You're quick."

Lupin stared over the glossy book pages in her lap, Riptide hovering over it and curled against her, staring just as intently at the pictures. He claimed he couldn't read human language, but he seemed to know the gist of each page. Lupin suspected it was because of the pictures. She continued browsing through the glossy pages, stopping long enough to stare at the information and pictures of the aforementioned Champion, who had, according to the text, conquered all eight of Johto's gyms and all eight of Kanto's, in record time. Then he challenged the Elite Four and the former Champion, before taking the title after blowing them all away with his powerful dragons. He's held the title for nearly twenty years, undefeated and undisputed reigning Champion of the Johto/Kanto regions and the Indigo Plateau. Few have advanced far enough during the tournaments to face him and those that had had been obliterated. Some pokémon had even died in battle.

As Lupin read this, she felt a queasiness settle in the pit of her stomach.

"Pokémon…die in battles?"

"Hm? Oh, yes. Yes, they do. It's a small percentage, but some do." Lupin shifted uneasily on the spot and Riptide tilted his head to stare up at her. "You don't like my answer."

"No. I don't," she admitted. "It's just… _why_? Why would you put yourself at _risk_ of that?"

He stared at her for a long minute, his jaws wired shut and his yellow-red eyes unnerving and still as they studied her. The tension grew between them, and the longer it stretched on, the more she regretted asking.

"We all want to be strong. Or a large population of us do. Pokémon, that is. And trainers, as an extension, I suppose. Most dream of taking down the Champion and gaining that prestigious title for themselves. Others dream of being the best breeder or contestant for pageants or whatever it is they want. But there's always a risk, both for pokémon and trainers. You risk being hit by a bus or a car every time you walk across a street, don't you?"

"I…I guess."

"And yet, you continue to walk across those streets, thinking that you will be fine. It's all about chance. It's the same with battling. If a pokémon dies in battle, at least they went out swinging. They went out a way they wanted—or at least, that's my impression. Besides, battling one another is key to a better life for pokémon."

Lupin tilted her head at him now, brows drawn up quizzically. She paused long enough to cast a few wary glances around her. They were resting at a local Pokémon Center in a small town whose name she'd already forgotten, night having fallen almost an hour ago. Almost as soon as they had arrived at the lab, and dealt with the cops, that edginess began to creep into her bones again. She had wanted out, she felt cooped up and cramped in the confines of the lab after only a few days. Professor Elm must have sensed her unease in being back, and not long after that, he'd presented her with more durable supplies for longer stays outdoors. The gifts had almost been rejected, but he had waved off her stutters and polite, yet failed rejections, telling her he understood and insisted she take them.

"You need to find answers, and you're not finding them here. Go, see the world, make friends, find out who you are. Totodile—sorry, _Riptide_ —seems to have taken a liking to you, so that's a good start."

He'd even presented her with a pokédex, explaining that Professor Oak had had it mailed to his lab the other day and wanted it to be given to her.

The electronic device now sat in her pack by her feet. She had yet to really pop it open and fiddle with it, find that she preferred the feel of books instead. But that same book in her lap was forgotten in lieu of her questions and curiosity, and now she was regretting asking. Not if it meant being pinned under those unnerving little reptilian eyes. Riptide finally looked away, and it took every ounce of self-control to keep herself from letting out a sigh of relief.

"If I remember what Professor Elm said correctly…battling helps us level up and evolve more quickly. When a pokémon lives in the wild, they fight for survival, and only sometimes for the joy of it. Even when wild pokémon battle, they don't grow as quickly, they don't evolve. It can take them years in the wild. But battling is the main way we stay healthier, that we…we're more powerful than wild pokémon. And trainers, when they take in a pokémon, put them on their main roster, those pokémon develop quicker, they learn their move sets faster. If I was wild, for example, I would probably remain a Totodile for several years longer, and hope I don't get eaten or killed."

Riptide paused, watching as a young man with an Abra stroll by, the psi pokémon clinging to its trainer's backside.

"Trainers…bring out the best in pokémon. And, on most—not all, mind—occasions, they do the same for in reverse. That's usually where breeders come in. They want to raise and spread out the best of the best. They help bring out that best through their breeding programs, helping trainers raise possible future-champion worthy pokémon. It's…"

He fell short, his words petering out as he searched for a viable explanation. He _wanted_ her to understand.

"You strive to be better than your wild cousins. You want to live to the expectations of your breeders and parents," Lupin surmised. He nodded, although it wasn't the whole story, just a part of it.

"I…have things to overcome. Blocks to…push over," he admitted. He ignored the wry, knowing smile flashed his way. Instead, he focused on the book in her hands. He didn't notice the way her lips curved downward into a frown seconds later, and the furrowed brow that drew up while worry crept in her eyes.

"But…that still doesn't answer why you'd ignore the risks. I mean, survival, yeah, I get it. In the wild, I mean. But why go out of your way to pair off with people, and risk dying just to get better."

"From the studies I gleaned while at the professor's…it's been theorized and studied as to being more beneficial to a pokémon's health, like I mentioned. A pokémon who battles even only once every few months, their health and immunity jumps up higher than before. Something…there's something about battling that helps boost a pokémon's personal health versus one that never battles. There were other studies from other professors in different regions that Professor Elm was reading about and he was on a hype about it for several weeks, saying it could be another link to their faster evolution. A healthier immune system equaling out to a faster yet easier transition when it came to their growth cycles into the next stage of development." He laughed, glancing at her again. "But it's also fun to beat the snot out of someone else."

She scowled at him, and flicked the side of his snout. Riptide laughed again.

"You should get more pokémon, though. I know I'm strong, but I can't hold the two of us afloat for forever, you know."

"Excuse me?"

"Catch another pokémon. Is it that hard a concept to grasp? Phillip gave you some pokéballs before we left, didn't he?"

She stared at the side of his head, but her eyes soon drifted to the side of his neck, as they were usually wont to do nowadays. The flesh had long since healed and the once-large puncture marks where the fangs had pierced were barely discernable now, but she still shivered all the same. She conceded that he had a point, but she hesitated in voicing that. She didn't feel she was ready to take on another pokémon, an unknown newcomer with no idea on whether they'd hate her guts or if they'd try their damnedest to flee her presence.

The little Totodile snorted and whipped his tail against her arm, smacking it lightly. "Relax. Not all pokémon are like those sheltered ones back at the lab. I know you've noticed how the city dwellers didn't seem to mind you all that much. There are bound to be plenty of wild pokémon who can stand your smell too. Some might even be attracted to it."

Lupin gave him a disgruntled look.

"Not that way, you sicko."

"I wasn't thinking about that!"

"You are now," he replied dully, swiping a page with his paw to turn it.

"Only because you friggin' mentioned it. If anyone's the pervert, it's _you_. Just—how old _are_ you, are you even _allowed_ to talk about that shit?"

"We don't measure our ages the same as you," Riptide replied, but he paused, contemplating. "But if I were to do so…perhaps two. My kind grow slowly at my stage. The breeders want to develop potential fighters and it takes time."

"…that's not a comforting thought. You're two years old."

"Wait until I'm a Croconaw. I'll be equivalent in age to your young adults. Or a human's, at least. How fast do werewolves grow?"

"I…I don't know," she admitted, her face flushing and her ears pressing tighter against her skull beneath her hat. "It…my journal doesn't say. But I don't think I was a…born one."

Riptide fell quiet and so did she, and the silence stretched on. Neither of them had fully broached the subject about Lupin's missing bits and pieces of her past. She wasn't quite ready to share what she knew from her book—which was, admittedly, not much. And he wasn't quite ready to poke the Ursaring, so to speak, for answers, not since the full moon, even after their growing mutual understanding and respect to one another. If he could blush, he probably would have been doing so for carelessly forgetting and slinging the question her way. He knew enough as well as her that she had been bitten and torn asunder, and that was most likely how she'd come to be what she was. The scars written across her body were testimony to that.

He reflected once again that it might have been a blessing in disguise that she didn't know who had done it, but then he remembered her night terrors. She woke every morning before dawn in a panic and cold sweat, reeking of terror and desperation to get away from…whatever it was she had been dreaming of. She claimed to never recollect what she'd been seeing, and he believed her. It was hard not to, when the confusion set in shortly after she awoke, the knitting of her brow and upsetting frown forming on her face. She both yearned and feared to know what she was trying to remember while she slept that her conscious mind refused to glean access to.

A young girl in a flowery sun dress skipped past them, and a trio of Bellossom followed in her wake as she approached the front counter. Riptide watched them for a few spare moments.

"I'm sorry," he said at last, "I didn't mean to—"

"I-It's okay…really." She lifted her hand to cover the back of his head, her index finger stroking the area just behind his eyes. They closed on reflex, both sets of eyelids sliding shut at the pleasurable tingle her scratches emitted and he let out a long, drawn out hiss.

"Ohhhh, yessss….right there…"

She chuckled, but it was short-lived and the silence quickly built up again, but he didn't feel the same amount of tension and awkwardness shielding the bubble around them now.

"Do you…really think I could be a trainer? Like, an actual one. Not just…an assistant lab tech."

He peeped one eye open and tilted his head to glance at her.

"…I do. You have potential. You catch on to things quick. I'm sure whatever they teach in those classes, you'd learn fairly quickly. I saw the way you watched the professor worked, especially around the machinery. The way your hands twitched unconsciously. I think they remembered the way they used to tinker and work. Phillip's hands do the same. They twitch too, aching to do something when there's nothing to do."

He paused, closing his eyes again. They had remained in solitude in their little corner of the center, with no one spying on them or eavesdropping. No one bothered them as they carried on their conversation.

"I know you noticed how you smell like machine oil too. It's faint, but it's there…and there's a reptile musk about you, too. You must have been a trainer at some point, but something happened. You lost them, and now you have to start over, but…I think you'll be just fine. Maybe you'll find them again."

A small amount of false hope, they both knew it was just that, but it was a nicety he knew she'd appreciate it to some degree.

"Maybe…we should go to Violet City, then. And sign up for the trainer classes."

"You'll have to pay a large fee," he warned. "Older trainers tend to get hit harder than the children do, for obvious reasons."

"I suppose that's true," she nodded and sighed. "I guess…I'm gonna have to find a way to get the money saved up, then."

"You might get a discount or a cut in the price if you call the professor."

"I don't want to impose—,"

"Shut up with the nice act, call his ass, and demand a trainer's license. Put on some pouty lips you lot can do and maybe some tears and he'll crack."

Lupin glared at him as he rattle-laughed.

"I don't cry on cue." She huffed back.

"Then _I_ will. A poor ailing pokémon doomed to never see the real side of battling. I'm sure he'll be touched enough to cover most of the fees."

"I'm not getting him to pay!"

"Then suffer under an assistant lab tech's license and live with the regret." He countered, and she groaned.

"You're an evil little croc, you know that?"

"I learned from the best in my family," he chortled back, smacking her book. "Come. Put that dead weight back into that magic bag of yours and let's get some chow. We should be able to reach the Haunted Forest so we can make it through by tomorrow night if we get an early start."

"Just don't eat the rental pokémon."

"This again? I told you. Wild ones are better. They're fatter."

"Have you ever had one?"

"Once and it was delicious. I relish in having another someday." He paused to jump off her lap, then added as an afterthought, "And no, I won't eat the rental pokémon. I swear."

"Should I even believe you?"

Lupin began to carefully push the book back into her pack, mindful of the egg that sat nestled in her pack. It was the very same one Professor Elm had had her fetch, and now she was on a new mission for him: to care for the egg until it hatched. He had admitted, rather sheepishly, that he and Phillip simply didn't have the time for the small nuances of egg-care. He had rattled on about how traveling seemed to encourage them to hatch rather than sitting in an incubator in a lab day in and day out, something or other, but Lupin had agreed nonetheless.

She ran a hand over its smooth surface, comforted by its warmth and the faint movements she could feel from within. It must be close to hatching, she figured, before carefully reassembling her sleeping bag over it as additional cushion. Shouldering her pack at last, she sighed as Riptide continued. "Would this face lie to you?"

"Yes, I believe so," she answered without looking at him, scooping him up to perch on her shoulder. He skittered across the length of her shoulders, snorting as he settled down.

"Fun killer."'

She sighed in exasperation. "I told you, it's 'killjoy', not 'fun killer'."

"I like mine better."

"Of course you do."

Violet City, if she had mapped it out correctly, was a little over a week away. The rest for the night will be a welcome relief, but she knew they had a ways to go.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"All right, so…the books said I'd have to—"

"Forget the books."

"But—"

"Forget. The. Books. I told you, I know how to do this."

"Riptide, I—"

"Dammit, you stupid woman, I can do this and I have more experience, so you'd best listen to me!"

Lupin stared at the blue-scaled reptile, frozen in shock and bewilderment at his hissy outburst. They had bypassed Cherrygrove several hours before, and were now resting, although Lupin would hardly call what they were doing 'resting'. Riptide was _restless_. He wanted to battle and with much reluctance, she'd given a bit of slack in the leash she'd had him on along the way to Cherrygrove. She had even promised, after several days' worth of grating pleads and whining from Riptide, to add another pokémon to their roster.

Her bemusement quickly settled into annoyance and her ears flared back against her skull. He stared back, unimpressed at the glower she presented him with. They held their stare off for several long seconds before he snorted, turning away to stare into a sea of rippling grass that grew in tall stalks on one side of the road. The side they were on, was clean of it all, the ground worn from previous resting bodies. He glanced back at her, the sun making his yellow-red eyes dance.

"The grass is the best place to go sniffing out pokémon. There are plenty of beginner-worthy ones in there," he continued with a faint nod of his snout. "You track one down or stumble over one, or they come rushing you, or maybe we can catch one by surprise—it doesn't matter. As soon as that happens, I can take it from there, weaken it enough for you to catch in one of those empty pokéballs. Simple enough, yes?"

"Uh…"

"What? Is it too hard to grasp? Need me to break it down even more?" He asked dully.

"Rip…"

She nodded over back toward the grass. He turned his attention back and blinked. A Pidgey had come hopping out of the grass, pecking at the ground. Its dusty brown and cream coloured feathers fluffed up and the little bird shuddered, tail feathers rattling back and forth as it paused in its pecking. Riptide looked up at her and she stared back. Then they both turned their attention back to the Pidgey who either didn't care that they were there, or wasn't paying very good attention to its surroundings.

"…well?"

Lupin hesitated for another moment, digging into her pack for a spare pokéball. After pressing the button to expand it, she nodded to him.

"Water gun."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"Do I come across you lot, kicking up dirt and spaying air into your faces? Nooo, I didn't, I was just minding my own business and then you rude lot come and attack me!"

"Please. Please, let me eat him. He's so annoying, he won't shut up!"

Lupin sighed, her arm propped up on her knee, her chin in her hand as she watched the little Pidgey rant as he strutted and hopped and fluttered back in forth. Riptide was attempting to cover his ears with his paws, but they couldn't quite reach his head all the way.

"Um…Syd?"

"I'm not done!"

"Yes, yes you are. You got caught. Live with it."

The Pidgey puffed up, looking rather indignant, before the feathers all settled back down and all the air came hissing out of his beak.

"Fine. I'm done," he muttered. Then he perked and hopped over to Lupin, landing on her free knee. She sat back up, leaning on her arms. "So. You're my trainer. My brothers and sisters were caught by some of you types running through here over the last few years. But…I don't think any of them had those things sticking out of their heads."

He began preening himself.

"Well…I'm not exactly human. Can't you smell it?"

"Some birds don't have that great a sense of smell, lady. We depend more on our sight and sound than our noses. You don't really smell all that much, except kinda…musky."

"'Musky'," Lupin repeated dully. Riptide rattle-laughed. Lupin reached over and flicked his hide.

"Yeah. Musky. Ain't too much else to say. Except you look weird." Syd cocked his head to the side. "Doesn't mean it's a _bad_ thing. Weird can be good, too."

Lupin didn't feel very moved or convinced by the bird's reassurance, but she didn't press the issue. Instead, she shifted to gather her pack and motioned to Riptide to come over. He waddled closer and she scooped him up, replacing him on her shoulders. Syd fluttered into the air, circling overhead and came in for a landing—right on Riptide's head.

"Get. Off. Me."

"Naawww, I think I like this spot. You make a good perch, there, uh…what's your name again?"

"You won't live long enough to remember it by the time I'm through with you, bird. Get off my head."

"Empty threats, you wouldn't eat me." Syd hesitated, then leaned closer to Lupin's twitching ear and muttered, "He wouldn't, would he?"

Lupin shrugged. "I dunno. He kept staring at some of those rental Hoothoot down at the Haunted Forest like they were ready-to-go meals…"

She grinned at a little at the startled chirp Syd made. He promptly jumped back into the air with a flutter of his wings and came to settle on Lupin's other mostly-empty shoulder. His wing pressed against her cheek, warm and comforting and the smell of feather dust kept drifting over to her. It was…pleasant.

"I'm not taking my chances with that stinking reptile. I just remembered I heard about one of my cousins got offed by one of them Totodiles not too long ago."

"Smart Pidgey," Riptide crooned back with a chortle. "Know your place in the food chain and this team."

"Oi. No one is eating anyone while they're on my roster. Be nice," Lupin finally said, deciding it was time to intervene and nip this in the bud. She didn't want things getting ugly if they didn't have to. She knew she shouldn't have egged the situation on, but hell…she couldn't help it. It was kinda funny.

"Fine, fine," she heard from Riptide. Nodding in satisfaction, Lupin picked up her hat last and carefully tucked her ears away under it. After she did that, she started back down the path again.

"Well, now that that's over, why don't we start heading out to Violet City now."

"Violet City? I'm from around there. If you need directions, just let me know."

"Thanks, I'll take it into consideration. I kinda wanna try this new device I got from Cherrygrove City."

Lupin dug into one of her inner coat pockets and pulled out a blue device that she flipped open. A screen lit up and displayed a map of the Johto region. Syd and Riptide leaned in a little.

"Ooh. A pokegear. Isn't that the one the old man in Cherrygrove had?"

"He gave it to me while you were snapping at those Murkrow, yes," Lupin answered. She flipped it closed and put it back into her coat pocket. Syd sneezed.

"Ah, the tech you humans come up with."

"Lupin, where did it say we were on the map? Show it to us again," Riptide interrupted. She glanced at him. The little croc hissed, one of his yellow-red eyes level with her.

She frowned, but obliged in bringing it back up, showing where the little glowing dot was.

"From what I figured, each pokégear is tracked via satellite and can tell every registered user where they are. I did some research on it while we were still in Cherrygrove. The Silph Company is the leading technological corporation in Johto and Kanto. So long as we update the software, and even the digital maps, we can use this just about anywhere. It's not as popular in the other regions as it is here, but it's possible we could go to, say…hmmm. Unova? Is that it? Well, if we went there and uploaded a map card of that region, we could have the same advantages as say, here."

"Like I said, the tech you humans come up," Syd repeated, ruffling his feathers against her cheek. "I personally think a regular map woulda done nicely. Or my eyes up above, but hey, whatever works. Just don't go crying when it fails ya. Tech might be handy, but I seen plenty of humans get lost due to glitchy tech."

"We'll be fine, Syd. Don't worry," Lupin reassured. She still had her paper map tucked away in her pack, and she could guide them as far up as Mr. Pokémon's home. After that, it should be a breeze to make the appropriate trail over to Violet City. Riptide hummed against Lupin's other cheek, bumping his snout against it.

"We still have a week's worth of traveling to do. I suggest training while we do that."

"Those damned spiders are back just north of here. Everyone's vacated the area. We'll have to move in the daytime to get past them," Syd concurred. Riptide shuddered and Lupin reached up to pat his side.

"We had a run in with them coming back down after an errand a few weeks back."

"The Rangers mighta taken care of them, but I doubt it. They take forever to get their tail feathers down here. Evidence this and proof that…tch. Burn them out, I say. Might lose a bit of forest and a few pokémon, yeah, but something else will grow back. It always does."

Lupin frowned at the Pidgey's rather calloused opinion and it reminded her of the night she had brought fire to life with only her will. She had felt tempted, she would admit, to do the very same thing. It had been a fleeting idea, one that didn't stick, but now she wondered what would have happened if she had followed through. Riptide made no comment, and she wondered if he even knew.

She pushed the thoughts from her mind.

"Well, we don't exactly have a fire-type with us and I doubt we'd find one, short of trading one of you away or adopting one."

"You can keep an eye out. It'd be useful against the bug-types that roam the place, especially the poisonous ones. The grass-types are more docile, but a few can get uppity every once in a while. Those Spearow, though, they're a pain. They're always attacking me and my flock, and Ho-Oh forbid if those damned Fearow don't join in on their terrorizing us." Syd grumbled. "A fire-type would probably scare off any who try to attack us, too."

Riptide hummed again.

"We'll see. One step at a time. Let's just make it up to Violet City first."

"What're you gonna do up there, anyway? Challenge the gym leader there?"

"Who's that again?"

"Falkner. He specializes in flying-type pokémon, like me. I toldja, I live around the area. I know a thing or two about the place," Syd continued. He went to preening himself again.

"Um…well, not really. I'm not going there to challenge the gym leader. I'm…going to school."

"School."

"To…get my license, to be a trainer."

There was a brief pause, and the longer it dragged on, the more awkward it got. Syd became very still. Riptide froze as well, waiting.

"Wait a minute. You mean to tell me…you're not a licensed trainer?"

"Not…exactly," she admitted. "I…don't exactly remember…anything. About myself, where I'm from, who I was. I got amnesia. I didn't have a license on me when I was found, so I have to get a new one."

"Oh. That sounds…simple enough."

"Not really. I have to study for three weeks and then take some kind of test. I could use some help, though."

"From me, right?"

"And Riptide. He's…he's pretty good at this stuff. So, what do you say? Feel like sticking around for a while longer?"

"You askin' me? You're the aspiring trainer-to-be. Wait. Hold old are you?"

"Uh…according to my dog tags, I'm…thirty-four."

"…You're _old_."

"Shut it," she snapped back, although it wasn't entirely calloused. Syd chirped back, nipping at her bangs. She flapped a hand at him and he nipped at her fingers before going back to her bangs and preening through them with his beak.

"I meant you're old for a _starting_ _trainer_ ," he backtracked. "Don't take it too personally. There's plenty of adult students that go to the academy in Violet City. Looks like they got all sorts that go through there."

"She'll do fine. She's smart," Riptide said on her other side. "If she pays attention and doesn't _forget_."

"Oh, here we go again. Forgetful jokes at my expense. Ha-ha."

He rattle-laughed. "You make it easy."

"Shut it," she reiterated again with a sigh.

This was going to be another long trip, but now with double the company. _Joy_. She smiled in spite of herself, however. It wasn't going to be as lonely though, she reflected. Even if Professor Elm had snuck in Riptide to do this in the first run up here, she was…glad. She looked back on the idea of doing this alone and found that it wouldn't have been as fun to pass the time. It would have been lonely. She liked this a lot better.

And who knows, maybe she'd meet more amicable pokémon like these two. One could only hope, right?

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

** **

 


	14. Escape

**Chapter Thirteen: Escape**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“Okay, I just figured this out…RUN!”_ **  
-Malcolm, “ _Malcolm in the Middle_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“We shouldn’t be here. This place is bad news. Zubat swarms, Geodude clusters—I even think there’s Onix roaming this area. This is a bad place.”

Lupin ignored the nervous chirping in her ear. Riptide seemed to hold the same opinion, because he snorted rather indignantly. “We’ll be okay. We’re not going into the caves. Not far, at least. I just want a good look.”

“Look when you have a team that can stand up to them rock-types and those filthy little bloodsuckers—look, I’m a _bird_. I have fragile little wings, as much as it pains me to admit. Tough ones, mind, but only to a point. If you threw a rock at me, I’d probably be hurting. You throw a boulder at me like some of those Geodude can, or Suicune help me, an Onix’s _head_ , I’m down. I’m out. I’m _gone_. There’ll barely be any feathers to properly bury me. Trust me when I say this, the Dark Cave is a bad place for a beginner like you. And that’s just the inner chamber of the first cave. This place has lots of them and they only get worse further in. Or so I heard.”

“If you’re only going off second-hand accounts, you do realize that gossip tends to double the lies and exaggerations, and they bury the truth, right? I doubt we’ll get swarmed the moment we step inside, Syd.”

They hadn’t gone much further than the entrance, and he was already a nervous wreck. Further into the cave, she could see the first antechamber, the ceiling high, with plenty of crevices and hidey-holes in which something could hide. The ceiling was clear of anything living, but the claims of living rocks and any places they could be was endless. Somewhere deep within, Lupin could hear water running, dripping, sliding. A part of her wanted to go further in, where she could see another tunnel readily available for additional exploring, but this little outburst had Lupin hesitating as her nose picked up the clear nervousness Syd was exuding.

She reached up to scratch his head and he nipped her fingers. She withdrew them quickly, sucking on the tips and glaring out from the corner of her eye at the little brown bird.

“Hey!”

“I’ve seen it happen, I told you before; I _lived_ in this area. I flew all over the place between here and Violet City, and all the way down to New Bark Town. I know a thing or two more than you and that bratty little reptile you got over there.”

Riptide hissed in reply. “What was that, you scrawny meal with wings?”

“You heard me,” Syd countered back with a nasally hiss of his own. “What’re ya gonna do to me? _Nothing_. Lady, trust me. The cave is bad news. You’re not ready. Not with us, not like this. I’m good for an adventure and all, but not this. Not now. I prefer not being pitted against friggin’ rock-types, they tend to have an advantage over us flying-types.”

She hesitated again, taking in the little bird’s words that were being chirped into her ears. She could sense the unease in his tone, although for all his worth, he was trying not to sound afraid. She reached up again, and this time she was allowed to rub at his head and he tilted this way and that, allowing her to get at all angles of his little skull.

“I’m taking your word into consideration, Syd. Don’t think I’m not. But I’m not going much further than the entrance. I promise. We’ll be fine,” she reassured him. He was silent except for the flutter-ruffle of his feathers puffing up. Riptide let out a long sigh through his gaping jaws.

“You also seemed to conveniently forget I’m a water-type. I can compete against the weaker rock-types.”

“Say that to me again when you get hit by a Zubat’s supersonic and you’re too busy bouncing off walls to deflect rock attacks. No, really. I’ll wait,” the Pidgey muttered back before sighing. “But, whatever. You’re the boss, Lady.”

“I have a name. Please use it,” Lupin softly chided. Syd shrugged his wings.

“Naw, I like ‘Lady’ better. More classy, ya know?”

“Ugh. You sound like a punk kid.”

“Says the woman who can’t even remember who she is.”

“Not you too!”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

There was a strain in the air that continued to build and make the air thick with unbridled pressure, the heralding of an oncoming storm. The sky had long ago been drained of its colour and the air was wet with promise of fresh rain. When they had entered the first cave chamber, it had started sprinkling. Now a reprieve seemed to have taken place, yet from the looks of things, and from the heavy moisture in the air, the clouds above were heavy with their liquid burden and looked ready to unleash it all. But there was the ever- tension in the air, a heavy pressure, the spark of more. It made Lupin tingle and buzz with unspent energy begging to be released. She continued to eye the angry dark clouds that had stolen away the cheery blue that had been there earlier that morning, if only briefly. There was going to be more than just rain, the sky seemed to promise.

“Another storm,” she noted offhandedly. They stood at the threshold of Dark Cave, the darkness to their backs, the wrathful looking sky leering down at them from above.

“Looks like,” Riptide carefully intoned. Syd shuddered.

“Hate these things. Especially when the sky lights up and makes everything too bright. Always feels like Raikou’s going to come crashing down on our heads, wrath and all.”

“You keep mentioning those names. Raikou, Suicune. Who are they?”

“You’ll have to forgive the amnesiac, she has no idea about anything whatsoever.”

“Rip…” Lupin murmured warningly.

The little blue reptile rattle-laughed. Syd crawled down her arm as she slowly dislodged her pack and sat, staring at the sky warily still. She cast her eyes around the forest beyond, tempted to make a run for it in the shelter of the trees, but then she remembered it wouldn’t be wise to do so. If a stray bolt of lightning hit a tree they were under or close to, it probably wouldn’t end well. Syd settled onto her knee, puffing up into a little feathery ball while Riptide slid from her shoulder to occupy her lap. The Pidgey eyed the blue gator suspiciously for a time before turning his gaze to Lupin.

“I’m not sure how you people tend to tell it, but this is how we pokémon tell it. A long time ago, the great sky god, Ho-Oh and the great beast of the sea, Lugia, lived in harmony. Lugia is the god of the seas and the storms, and swims in the deepest, darkest parts of the ocean, keeping the world from being torn apart by following a great deep sea current. If he doesn’t, the world will fall to ruin. And Ho-Oh, she is the guardian of the sky. She flies all over the world, keeping the balance in the air like Lugia keeps it in the seas.”

Syd paused to preen one of his wings.

“So all is good, for a long time. The elders have even said that Ho-Oh has brought wars to a halt or stopped altogether by simply appearing to warring parties and clearing the darkness in their hearts. She brings happiness and peace to those who lay eyes upon her, her gift and way of keeping the balance. And the same can be said when the balance of the world is threatened and only the beast of the sea can quell it all. But, like every legend, there comes a tragedy.”

Riptide shifted in her lap to stare at the bird more properly, his eyes half-lidded and boredom clearly dominated them. Lupin suspected he’s heard this before.

“Ho-Oh never lands on the ground. She flies everywhere, never ending and whatnot. But there was one perch in which she took her rest, and that would be in Ecruteak City, which is to the northwest of here. The Bell Tower was where she took roost, and even then it was on rare occasions. Here, it gets a little iffy, this part. Some say someone provoked the great sky god and she took wing to defend herself and in the crossfire, she burned down the tower. Others in my old flock argue that it was a storm that had struck the tower and burned it to the ground. Other variations have been told, too, but the bottom line is, Bell Tower burned down, and the fire claimed the lives of three innocent pokémon.”

Syd ruffled his feathers again and turned his head to look out the cave mouth. It was drizzling again, the soft patter of water hitting the ground catching his attention.

“Ho-Oh took pity on them and felt a heavy remorse for the deaths of these poor creatures. So, she revives them, brand spanking new, as compensation for having their old lives taken away. She gave them new forms, new abilities. They were as fleet-footed as the wind, and as destructive as the forces of nature that they were crafted after. There was Raikou, the god of thunderstorms, and he was said to be able to travel in the very lightning he creates in these storms of his. Entei was created as the god of fire, and he was claimed to have the power to create volcanoes by merely roaring. And lastly, there was Suicune, the swiftest of the three and according to legend, the embodiment of the North Wind. She can purify any tainted body of water with the mere touch of her paws, and can run across any watery surface as though it was land.”

“Bah. Rubbish. No one’s proven their existence. People have chased those folklores for years and have come up with nothing.”

“Just because you can’t see air around you doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. You feel it filling your lungs, don’t you?”

“Air has been proven as the substance we require to live and breathe, since we’re organic beings, you tiny-brained bird. And you talk about these Legendaries as though they exist.”

“Some believe they do, and apparently, some don’t. It doesn’t really matter. Strange things happened in the past, and people and pokémon alike told stories in which to justify the results and fill in blanks or to explain phenomena that they don’t really understand. And maybe there are those who don’t believe in the stories, but we like to tell them anyway because they’re _entertaining_ ,” Syd countered haughtily, glaring at the reptile below him. “Not that I can expect much from a sheltered lab pokémon like you. You ain’t ever been out in the wild and seen what me and mine have seen.”

“I’ve seen plenty, and I’ve heard more about the whole of Johto from a more introspective side of things, thank you. Being a part of a research team has its advantages over a feral.”

“Don’t you look down your snout at me, lizard!” Syd leapt into the air and beat his wings, screeching in warning.

“Say that again to my face, you overgrown feather duster,” Riptide snapped, baring his gaping jaws at the Pidgey. He crawled up toward Lupin’s knees and gnashed his teeth. Lupin grabbed him around his middle and pulled him back in alarm. He squirmed at first, of course, but she held him steady while Syd stayed overhead, making tight little circles above.

“Enough, you two. You got me? Or it’s back in the pokéballs you two go,” Lupin hissed warningly. Riptide stopped struggling and leaned against her, looking rather sullen but for the moment, willing to give in for once. Syd gave a few more lazy circles around before coming back down to land near them. He hopped closer, pecking at the ground. Lupin reached over and rubbed at the top of his head and the back of his neck, beneath the downy of feathers and he leaned into the touch. The flesh beneath was warm to the touch, insulated by his feathers. He gave an unhappy coo when she finally stopped and pressed her hand toward his feet, forcing him to step onto it.

“Look, we’ll have to wait out the storm, but in the meantime, try not to kill each other. You’re supposed to be teammates, remember?”

“Tell bird brain to quit spouting off those tall tales and we’ll all be just pecha keen.”

“Oi, I’m serious. Knock it off.”

The werewolf gave Riptide’s belly scales a quick squeeze and he hissed at her, but grumbled a begrudging final affirmative. Syd sneezed.

“Lab pokémon. They think they know it all just cuz’ you got it a little more privileged than most of us ferals,” the little bird gruffly replied. “I see your type plow on through with new trainers all the time. You think you got the world pegged, but you’ll see soon enough.”

“See _what_?” Riptide demanded, glowering at the bird perched on Lupin’s hand. Lupin frowned, tightening her grip on the Totodile, just in case.

“The world ain’t all black and white with only a few smidgeons of gray here and there. It ain’t cut and dry like you might believe it is, and not everything can be written down and explained away in a pretty little textbook or research paper. Even your esteemed bookworm professors can’t explain everything about pokémon and the world we’re in. I can’t either, for that matter. I’m just a little Pidgey, but I know a few things more than you do about the real world. And if you’re gonna go strutting around with that attitude across Johto, than Ho-Oh help ya, ‘cuz you’re gonna end up in a world of pain soon enough if you don’t straighten up.”

Riptide continued to quietly glower at the little bird, and as a precaution, Lupin moved her hand holding Syd a little further away from the blue-scaled reptile. He made no moves to attack, but she knew he had ranged attacks like water gun that he could have easily unleashed. She was glad he didn’t as he finally curled in her lap, his back facing the Pidgey.

There was a long minute that passed between them all, a strained tension that seemed to drag on the seconds and make them feel like an eternity was passing for each and every one of them. When Syd himself deemed he was safe, he slowly crawled up the length of Lupin’s arm before settling against her neck and cheek, preening at her bangs. Her ears occasionally twitched at the movement and he would teasingly nip at them in response, or even try to preen the fur of her ears.

Lupin laid her newly freed hand on Riptide’s back. He was tense and angry, and she could understand it, to a degree. He had just had his hide handed to him, so to speak, by a tiny bird only a quarter of his size. But she had to agree with Syd; the Totodile could be a little bratty and he had a know-it-all attitude sometimes. While he was being more helpful nowadays, he still tended to be smug and not very humble about it.

Syd had laid a verbal smack down on Riptide, and for once, he didn’t have a witty comeback to fall upon. He was unhappy and hurt, she could sense that much from his sullen silence. She glanced at Syd from the corner of her eye, but he gave no indication of apologizing and continued about his business.

“We should go soon. The Zubat tend to stir more often the closer it gets to nighttime, and those Geodude, I dunno. They look like boulders at first, until you trip over them,” Syd finally warned, tugging at a strand of Lupin’s hair.

The werewolf finally nodded. Perhaps it was time to go. She could set up the tent and they could enjoy a relatively quiet evening inside it and then—

—and then, at that moment, the sky had decided to drop its rain upon the world. Heavy sheets came pouring down, and even from several feet away, she could feel the iciness that permeated off the water. Lupin stared in incredulity and consternation, disappointment building up inside at first before a small sense of hope began replacing it. At least they had shelter for the time being.

Syd shuddered and let out a soft, disgruntled chitter in her ear.

“Oh, Arceus above, you’re kiddin’ me…” he grumbled, puffing a breath noisily through his little nostrils. “Great, now we have to stay in the cave and pray to the Legendaries above that we don’t wake up with all our blood sucked dry or our bones broken by boulders.”

“Syd, as much as I appreciate your oh-so-bright and cheery outlook on life…shut it. No, really. You’re bringing me down with all this doom talk, man.”

“I’m looking at this from a realist’s point of view, all right? I told you earlier, I’m just one little Pidgey. I have fragile bones compared to a rock-type’s, well…rock-hard body.” He fluttered nervously against her, stilling momentarily. “I just, I don’t wanna die in a place like this, okay? I don’t wanna not see the sun and the sky in my last moments. If I have to go out, then that’s fine, but…I wanna do it with the sun on my face and the wind in my feathers. Not in the darkness and cold.”

Lupin was, for a few moments, taken aback by his words. Even Riptide stirred from his spot in her lap to glance back at the bird on her shoulder. He studied both her and Syd with those yellow-red eyes, and Lupin reached up to cover the Pidgey’s feather backside with the palm of her hand. She stroked him a few times reassuringly, settling his feathers down with each one.

“I won’t let anything bad happen to you in this cave tonight, okay? I promise.”

“As sweet as that is, Lady, you can’t promise something like that.” He pressed tightly against her and rubbed his beak against her cheek a few times. “But I appreciate the sentiment all the same. Just…please, don’t make me go back in that place again. I couldn’t see anything. And I need my sight. I _depend_ on it. Not seeing anything in there was driving me nuts, I thought we were gonna get offed for sure.”

“We’ll camp out right here, close to the cave entrance. When the storm passes, we’ll know about it.” She continued to pet him, ignoring the disgruntled mutters from Riptide. What Syd lacked in sight in the darkness, her own only seemed to thrive. She could see every pebble, boulder, stalagmite and stalactite that ringed the chamber they had explored with what little light they could work with. Temptation had called to her more than once to summon fire at a moment’s notice in order for the other two to see, but the way Syd had quivered and shook against her earlier, she was afraid it would have startled him too much.

But her answer for the time being seemed to satisfy him. With that confirmed, she started setting up her sleeping bag. Riptide had, for the time being, waddled off into the rain to soak up the water as it fell. She couldn’t understand why or how he could stand being in cold water but not cold air. _Must be a reptile thing_ , she concluded for the moment.

For a while, she let him romp about in the puddles and the rain water, while she and Syd watched. It grew darker and Syd progressively shuffled closer to Lupin’s neck and hiding under her hair. Occasionally he’d shiver and ruffle his feathers.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just…keep an eye on that blue brat, would ya? He puts up a tough front and he slings around all that knowledge he learned at that lab of his, but…that’s all it is. It’s a front. He doesn’t know as much as he likes to think he does and he knows it. You can see it in those eyes of his. I’m not saying he’s stupid or nothing, but…he’s got a lot to learn. And if he keeps carrying on the way he does, I’m afraid it might turn out to be a painful lesson. You’re his trainer. Try to ease it up for it, ya know?”

“You seem to know an awful lot for a wild pokémon.”

“Like I said before, I’m a little bird. I get overlooked a lot and I can listen in on things. You pick up a lot from traveling trainers. Labs and professors know plenty too, but I don’t see that professor out in the field all too much. I think he coops up in the labs and research departments too much. Sheltered life don’t do too good for most pokémon. Makes ‘em complacent.”

Her ears twitched on occasion as he spoke, and every so often, her eyes would stray to the field outside the cave, where she could make out Riptide pounding through puddles. He didn’t move like a traditional crocodilian could move. He could push up to his hind legs, and his tail was semi-prehensile. He was an odd thing, but then again, so was the bird perched on her shoulder. His wings were tiny, yet they could create a gust powerful enough to harm. He claims he was only a little bird, but she couldn’t think of a regular bird having the muscle strength to create something even half as powerful as the buffeting drafts Syd could produce.

After some time passed, she rummaged through her pack and pulled out the dishes she had for her two pokémon, filling them with some chow. Syd hopped down to his perch as Lupin called to the little blue gator outside. He came trudging back, rivulets of water still sluicing down his blue hide. He collapsed beside his dish, half-heartedly digging into the food. Lupin noted the still-present surliness he kept directing at Syd with his glares. Not even halfway done, he finally pushed the dish away and muttered that he was tired.

The werewolf watched the sullen Totodile, her brow scrunching up in worry. She glanced over at Syd, who had watched the exchange as well. He ruffled his feathers, cocked his head, and then returned a quiet stare back at Lupin. He held her gaze for a few moments before turning back to watch Riptide.

“I’ll go talk to him. You just sit tight,” he said, and with a last peck of his food, he hopped away toward the blue-scaled reptile. Lupin wavered, almost tempted to get up and follow them as the little Pidgey motioned for them to head back outside. She stopped, however, at the parting glance from the little bird and sat back down on her sleeping bag. Her ears flicked and swiveled about, suddenly feeling hypersensitive to the lack of immediate company. She curled up, drawing her legs up to her chest and resting her chin on her knees. It was chilly, but she didn’t feel it so much as she registered it.

Her thoughts came to a sudden halt at the sound of a loud crash further in the cave, however and she sat up, ramrod straight. Every inch of fur on her tail stood on end, and she sat there, stock still, muscles coiled and ready to spring. She stared into the dark abyss, suddenly paranoid of being watched. She stared hard and long, her ears no longer concerned or tuned to the conversation Syd was holding with Riptide. She didn’t even hear them returning until Syd flapped around her ears and landed on her shoulder. She jumped in surprise, startling him in return and he jumped back into the air.

“Sheesh! You’d think with flappers like those, you’d hear us and anything within a couple square miles heading your way.”

Lupin tried to settle her nerves, breathing deeply and evenly, but there was a shake in her hands she couldn’t quite get rid of yet. She smiled, nonetheless, and waved the Pidgey’s concerns away and offered her hand to him to land on.

“I’m fine, just…thought I heard something else while you lot were talking, but it was nothing. Just the rain.”

She avoided the pointed stare she received from Syd, and glanced instead over at Riptide as he came waddling over. She offered her lap to him and he readily clambered into it. He looked less sullen, and she had to wonder what Syd had said to him. Her question, however, remained glued to the roof of her tongue.

“We should get some sleep and hope this storm is gone by the morning. We’ll make it to Violet City by midday, if we’re lucky.” Riptide said with a gaping yawn, interrupting her thoughts. Lupin scratched his snout and laid down, letting Syd flutter into her sleeping bag’s hood. He twitched and shifted until he was comfortable before settling into a squashed feathery puffball beside her head.

“You sure we’ll be okay?”

“Yes, Syd. I’m sure. She reached up and gave him one last scratch behind his head and he chirped back. “If you say so, Lady…”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Her head was ringing. Or was it her ears? She wasn’t sure which anymore. But everything was spinning, that much she was sure of. The palms of her hands were bleeding—or they were. Or was it a part of her imagination? The copper taste in her mouth told her she’d bitten her tongue or her lip for sure, but the supposed wound was gone, no pain at all lingered. Her legs were still tangled in her sleeping bag, but they ached from where rock debris had fallen on them. She heard Riptide snarling and hissing, the noises he made echoing off cave walls and bouncing all over the place, making it hard to pinpoint where he was. Syd was screeching; there was terror in his voice. The air practically vibrated with fear and confusion and it was all reinforced by the frantic beat of wings. Dust clogged the air, making it hard to see past, but that wasn’t what stilled her from getting up, to spring into action, to do anything but sit there looking dumb and dazed.

No, it was the sudden, growing rumble that made pebbles tremble along the cavern floor, softly at first. It was almost muted by the rainfall outside that had grown to a downpour, accentuated by the occasional growling clap of thunder and bright flash of lightning to follow up. But then it grew, and at first, Lupin thought it to be the oncoming onslaught of more thunder, but in between the rousing silence in the sky, the growls grew deeper and remained steady until it exploded into an offensive roar that shook the very air.

It made Lupin’s heart race and her blood turn to ice in her veins. The anxiety that riddled her the night the Ariados and her brood nest had attacked her and Riptide paled in comparison to how it felt now. She was scrabbling up at last, ignoring the tearing feeling in her aching muscles, realizing a good amount of the debris that littered the cave floor around her must have hit her legs. Then a heart-stopping moment later, she realized it must have hit her head too, and that’s why she hadn’t awoken at first, why she had gotten up with blood in her mouth and a ringing in her ears.

_I might have a concussion. And my legs—did they break? Is that why they hurt at first?_

She pushed it all away, her worry growing for the other two. She wasn’t hurt now, and she could move. Lupin dove deeper into the blackness of the cave, and she could see a long, slithering shape make itself known, rising up nearly to the top of the cave’s ceiling. Blundering about in the dark, whipping back and forth with uncertainty in his movements, was Syd. He was beating his wings frantically, screeching up a storm, perhaps in an effort to confuse the wavering, snakelike creature before them. It was gargantuan in length and girth, and its head was broad in length and width as well. A horn rose at the crest of its head and when it wagged its head, it brushed against a few stalactites above, it broke them off with ease. They dropped down without a care, littering the cave floor. They shattered upon impact, kicking up more dust.

A gushing stream of water suddenly shot out from the ground toward the monstrous creature, the user hidden behind a wall of rock, but Lupin knew who it was. She rushed around, ducking on instinct when a tail came sailing toward her. She scrabbled forward, finding Riptide among the wreckage of boulders and fallen spears of rock and stone. He saw her approaching and stopped his torrential attack, waddle-running toward her. She scooped him up, ignoring the roars above them.

“That thing came out of nowhere—you got hit by the rocks, you weren’t waking up—and there was blood, there was a lot of blood, but we had to get it away from you—”

“Come on, let’s get out of here, let’s go—Syd! SYD! Get away from it, let’s go!”

“I can’t see where you guys are, where are you?!”

She hesitated, glancing at Riptide clinging to her. His breathing was rapid and shallow, his eyes gone to mere slits. Fear wafted off of him, stinking up the air and she saw the worry in them as he turned to stare back at her.

“Don’t get scared. Okay? Just…hold on to me.”

He stared at her questioningly, before something lit up in those eyes.

“No, no, no. You can’t use teeth and claws against that thing, that’s an _Onix_! You don’t even _know_ what they are, do you? It’s made of _stone_!”

“I just want to surprise him a little,” she warned, and despite the confidence she was trying to exude, she felt none of it in her core. Everything felt nervous and fluttery in her chest, like it was sinking away further and further down until it had dropped away completely. She had no idea if this was going to work or not, but she hoped her idea would work long enough for them to make a quick getaway.

“These things, they dwell in darkness a lot, right?”

“Yes, they do, but I don’t know much about them beyond that—”

“Are they sensitive to light?”

“They’re made of _stone_ , they don’t have the same organic reflex as we do when light sears our eyes. Just what—what are you planning on doing, waving a flashlight in its eyes?”

Lupin didn’t answer him. Instead, she directed her attention to the fluttering form in the air. Syd looked so tiny and insignificant compared to the Onix.

She breathed in deep, digging for that hot spark she’d felt that night in the forest she had first summoned her fire. It was there, an internal flame that never seemed to dissipate, but neither was it overwhelming. It churned and danced, suddenly flaring to life as she coaxed it forward to the surface. She waggled her hand and it grew brighter, the tips suddenly sparking until a bright yellow flame sat atop there, growing until her hand was engulfed. Riptide made a strangled noise of surprise and alarm, his jaws gaping to unleash another water gun, but she squeezed him.

“Shhh, it’s okay, I’m fine, it doesn’t hurt. Look. I’m not burning.”

He breath came in raspy swallows, a hiss growing in the back of his throat.

“You…you can make fire…” He said, almost in a trance by the flickering light. “So that’ show you fought off all those Spinarak that night…you scared them with fire.”

She nodded, turning her attention to the great stone beast that loomed over them. Syd paused, fluttering in midair, taken aback before taking a nose dive toward her. He landed on her shoulder and buried himself against her neck, shivering violently. Lupin kept her gaze locked on the Onix, its great head hovering in the air just above them. Even in the dark, she could tell its body was at least twice her height, but to see it in the light was as though it was truly confirmed and not just a trick of the shadows.

The Onix slithered around them, trapping them in a pen made by its encircled length. It leered down at them, like a snake would do upon its doomed prey. Lupin tried to hide the shiver that ran down the length of her spine as it brought its face closer to bear on them, a growl building in its stone throat.

“You are trespassing upon my territory,” it finally spoke. Its breath smelled of dust and dirt, of darkness beneath the earth that no human—and very few pokémon—would ever traverse. “Do you know what happens to trespassers that come here?”

“I would guess you kill them.”

A sound akin to thunder rumbled deep from the stone body around them, and it took a very long, belated moment for Lupin to realize that the Onix was laughing.

“I _eat_ them,” it corrected, its voice rumbling deeply like stone grating on stone. It paused, swinging its rock skull around. Lupin turned as it did, keeping it within sight at all times. Riptide hissed quietly and Syd pressed even tighter against Lupin, hiding under a curtain of hair.

“But you’re a curiosity…I have never encountered one such as you. Tell me, to slake my _thirst_ , so to speak…what manner of pokémon are you?”

Syd chirped nervously in her ear, but she heard the strangled gasp he emitted in between rapid breaths he took.

“Fire—you-you can make _fire_? Oh, sheesh, and here I thought the tail and the ears were it!”

Lupin ignored the nervous mutterings from the bird, trying to keep all her focus on the stone snake before her.

“I’m not a pokémon. I’m—I’m not even human, but I’m definitely not a pokémon.”

“Don’t try to lie to save your skin. You have fire dancing around your flesh, and those twitching appendages…you walk and look like a human, but you’re anything but. I’ve heard tales of pokémon who use trickery to walk amongst the humans, but I have never seen it before, not like this. Perhaps one of those bedeviled nine-tailed foxes?”

Lupin was all too aware, of the continuous circling the stone body was making around her, trying to keep her and the other two hemmed within the Onix’s perimeter. It dipped closer every now and then, as though trying to spook, but she held her ground even when her heart was pounding and every instinct told her to run.

“I’ve never heard of anything like that, but I can assure you I’m not some tricky pokémon.”

_Second time, second bloody time I’ve done this. Gone against warning, gone against instinct…_

And they had only camped at the cave’s entrance to get out of the rain. Instinct had told her to leave, to find shelter elsewhere, and so had Syd. _I didn’t listen, I should have_ listened.

She caught a glimpse of light, the faint glow of lightning as it briefly illuminated the cave entrance. She could just barely make out her rumpled sleeping bag, the pieces of rock that had fallen near or around the entrance…

Her eyes strayed back to the leering Onix before her, chills still racing up and down her spine, but now the ice had spread to her limbs, her chest, her gut, everywhere. Even the warmth of the fire could barely be felt as she tucked Riptide closer against her. He clung back in return, digging his claws into her shirt.

“Syd…Riptide. Hold your breath, for as long as you can.”

“What?”

“Just do it.”

“I can’t do it for long, Lady. What’re you planning?” Syd trembled against her. Riptide bumped the tip of his snout against her shoulder, pulling himself up to it.

“Just do it,” she repeated more firmly. “Just trust me. You’ll be okay. Close your eyes. You’re your breath. I promise you’ll be okay.”

There was no point in whispering, her voice carried all over the place even when she spoke softly. The Onix tilted its head quizzically at her words.

“What is it that you plan to do? Threaten to melt me, like so many other fire-types have tried before?”

Another rumble of laughter gurgled from the Onix, vibrating the air around them. The tip of the rock snake’s tail slid past them, just enough to show the cave entrance again. Time was up. Talking was over. The Onix was coiling to attack.

“No,” Lupin responded, willing the fire to spread up her arm. Syd shrieked, but she shushed him. Riptide watched from her other shoulder, fascinated and terrified all at once. The Onix paused as well, drawn in by the sudden revelation.

“No?” The Onix inquired.

“No,” Lupin repeated. Syd closed his eyes, cowering into the crook of Lupin’s neck, feeling the heat drawing closer. Riptide watched, muscles frozen, terror and captivation keeping him rooted to his spot. “Hold your breath,” she told him and Riptide again.

She turned back to the Onix and said, “I’m going to set myself on fire. Ta.”

And that’s just what she did.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	15. The Violet Hour

**Chapter Fourteen:** **  
The Violet Hour**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

" _[…] You need to_ live _and_ breathe _this stuff. The Dragon Manual. Everything we know about every dragon we know of. No attacks tonight. Study up."_ _  
_"Wait, you mean,__ read _?"_ _  
_"While we're still__ alive _?"_ **  
**-Gobber, Tuffnut, and Ruffnut, " _How to Train Your Dragon_ "****

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The sun was bright and cheery as it shone down on Violet City, alighting the sleepy forest around it with golden light that crept through branches and leaves, bushes and wilds. The previous night's storm seemed like a distant memory, the clouds no longer present like they had been the day before. But the immediate evidence of its watery onslaught proved otherwise. Puddles were littered where they could hold water. The grass and earth alike were soggy, sucking down paws and shoes alike for whosoever dared step there. Buildings were only beginning to dry as the sun rose higher in the morning sky. Yet the austere and quiet still of the day's start didn't forgo people from taking to the streets, going about their business.

Although, for all the good that has come after the storm, the quiet beauty of the city's drastically different environment and architecture couldn't really be appreciated by the tired werewolf trudging through it. Syd was snoozing against her neck under a curtain of her hair, while Riptide was slumped across her shoulders. Occasionally, he'd slip against the top of her pack, mutter a few things and readjust himself before plopping back down. Lupin continued on her trek, following the nifty little signs that pointed out the way to the Pokémon Center. When she finally found the center and lurched through the doors, there were a few trainers milling about the lobby and a clerk was working at the reception desk. She had her light brown hair pulled back, a pair of glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, and a rumpled blouse and pair of trousers donning her person. She shuffled with paperwork in between clattering away on her computer before noticing Lupin standing there in front of her.

She jumped and did a double-take on the haggard appearance of the werewolf, and the weary pokémon slumped along her shoulders.

"You wouldn't happen to have any rooms open and a, uh…laundry room I could use, would ya?"

Lupin offered a tired, meager smile and could only imagine how she looked to the woman, who was still staring at her owlishly. But, much to the receptionist's credit, she didn't miss a beat at Lupin's request when the moment passed. She turned to a drawer in her desk, producing a room key and a logbook. She motioned to the book first with a manicured finger.

"Fill out the book with your name, trainer ID number, pokégear number, check in time, and number of pokémon you have on hand with you. I'll fill out your information into the computer later. The laundry room is down the hall over there, and if you want some hot food, the cafeteria's further down the same hall. Your room's up on the third floor, room C." The woman paused, offering Lupin a sympathetic smile as she placed the room key beside the logbook. "You look like crap."

"You should see the other guys."

Lupin took a pen from a cup holding a slew of them and began scribbling into the book.

"What happened? Did you get into a fight with a Quagsire and lose?" Lupin snorted. Riptide muttered something unintelligible. The woman frowned a little and added with a hint of concern, "Your pokémon look really worn out; maybe you should leave them here to heal up. What did you do to them?"

"Me? We were the ones who got attacked by an Onix last night when we had to camp out in the Dark Cave because of storm."

"The Dark Cave?" The woman's face went pale. "You camped out _there_? It's been off-limits for _weeks_ because of the problems we've been having with those Onix. First the Ariados queen and now this…we really just aren't having any luck with these things stringing along, one right after the other."

"Told ya, Lady. Bad idea," Syd chirped sleepily. Lupin reached up to pat him gently on the head before pushing the book toward the receptionist. She jumped and took it without a second thought, glancing at the filled out columns briefly. She turned to her computer and began loading up her check in program. The werewolf slowly detached Syd and Riptide from her person, gently setting them on the counter to continue snoozing. She gave them each another pat, murmuring they deserved a nice, long rest and she'd be back for them later.

"Wait…did…did the Onix you were attacked by…did it have dark rock-skin? Almost black?"

The woman looked up, surprised to see Lupin already retreating with her room key in hand.

"I dunno. You tell me," she called over her shoulder as she headed toward the laundry room. The woman stared, then turned back to the woman's slumbering pokémon. Nestled beside them was a pokéball. She glanced back at the logbook in her hands.

_Pokemon On Hand: 3_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"Okay, so what am I doing now?"

"You boot up the PC and then you dump that bag of rocks into it, that's what. You're not keeping that murderous rock-snake on this team."

"Hey, hey, hey. I think I did pretty good getting Slate, don't ya think?"

"You—you _named_ that _thing_? And just as a reminder, you set us all on fire, you crazy, stupid, _insane_ _woman_. FIRE. How in the seven hells did you even _manage_ that? I'm still amazed we're all alive and not a pile of ashes that washed away with last night's rain."

Riptide glared at her from his seated position on the desk beside the computer screen. Syd chirped in her ear, pressing tightly against her neck as he preened at her hair. She continued to frown at him in return, glancing at the pokéball clipped to her belt, then back to the PC screen glowing before her. Outside, dusk was ushering in the night like a shepherd would his flock to new grazing lands, slowly but with obvious progress. He and Syd looked all the more better after some rest with the pokémon nurses and she with a nap upstairs in her temporary room. Riptide sighed, lowering his gaze.

"Look. You can't keep him on the team roster. Hear me out, before you get all huffy with me," he gave her a pointed stare when her cheeks flushed and she had an indignant response lined up on her lips. "Onix are known for their foul tempers and they're incredibly difficult to control, especially when they're being hurt and even more so, with new trainers. They rage about and it wouldn't matter who they hurt: opponent, trainer, or teammates alike. And judging from this particular one's foul temper, he wouldn't hesitate to crush you like a Caterpie, with or without the pain factor. Then he'd crush us, and he'd then go about his merry way back to the Dark Cave, or he'd stay here and wreak havoc until he grew bored or until the Rangers came to dispose of him."

Lupin shifted in her seat, feeling uncomfortable at his choice of words. " _'Dispose'_?"

The Totodile paused, recollecting himself. Then he twirled a paw in the air, as though to elaborate with more than just his words. "They'd do one of three things: they'd recapture him, kill him, or knock him out for relocation. Whatever their best choices would be. The professor is always butting heads with them regarding the inhumane option of killing them. He's more for relocation or capture. A lot of the professors are, in fact. The Rangers usually argue back that whatever option is the best given each case, they'll perform their duties with each situation that calls for it." Then the blue gator snorted. "Trust me. You're better off with me and birdbrain on the roster than him. Ever. You're too inexperienced. Onix require patience and a tougher team to keep an eye on with. We're not it right now, even if I have type-advantage. We have to play this out smartly."

"Hey! I heard that ' _birdbrain'_ nonsense, you little blue brat! You better watch your mouth or I'll watch it for ya."

"I invite you down here to my level any time, up close and personal, you little feather duster runt."

Syd hissed and ruffled his feathers, wings rising to splay out menacingly. Lupin scowled, flicking Riptide in the snout and then Syd at his feet. They both winced back and settled down.

"Oi. Knock it the fuck off. I'm serious. Two words. Team. Mate. Put it together, and that's what you two are. Get used to it."

They grumbled and griped under their breaths, but didn't act up again. Riptide instead turned his attention back on Lupin. "Put that Onix in the PC storage system. You'll only be afforded one box because of your assistant lab tech license at the moment, but when you're a fully registered trainer, you'll be allotted thirty. One's good enough for right now, however."

The werewolf hesitated. Three was always better than two, but she didn't want to ignore the warnings she was being given this time around. That was a mistake she'd already made twice before. Riptide waited, watching her expectantly. Syd was absolutely still on her shoulder.

Finally she unclipped the pokéball resting on her belt and put it in the pokéball transfer device beside the PC screen. She clicked enter on the keyboard and the pokéball disappeared in a stream of light. On the screen, a box registered in her name appeared, and in the far left hand corner, a miniature avatar of an Onix, nicknamed Slate, appeared. She sighed, leaning back into the hard plastic chair. Riptide glanced at the screen, his eyes half-lidded. Then he turned to her and crawled into her lap and rested his crooked jaws against her chest, the tip of it touching her chin. She reached over to scratch at the spots he liked. He responded by closing his eyes and letting out a long hiss that fizzled out into a tranquil sigh, his body relaxing against hers.

After a time, she stopped, and his eyes slowly peeped open. Syd snickered.

"Welcome back, ya lazy reptile. Care to join the rest of us mere mortals now?"

Riptide shifted his gaze, if briefly, to glare at the bird, but said nothing to him. Instead, he returned his focus on Lupin and clacked his jaws.

"One more thing," he agreed. "But it can wait until morning. They might be closed by now."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

A full night's rest did wonders compared to the short nap from the day before. Lupin felt more energized, especially after a hot meal and a comfortable mattress to sink into.

Violet City was still in its discreet state of beauty and demure architecture, although now the three could enjoy it. Businesses held an ascetic setting that were neutral and functioning, while the homes held a quiet stately manner with their sloping rooftops and neutral colouration that seemed predominant in the city. They had their own sense of elegance, one that didn't stand out, but had to be studied in order to appreciate in full. Everything was downplayed and somber, but it held a regal kind of loveliness, a softness on the eyes that was both appealing and pleasing.

At first, Lupin had wanted to rush to the Trainer School, to register and get started, but when she arrived, the sign said it was closed.

"School isn't open on weekends," Riptide pointed out, sounding disappointed. "It's Sunday. I forgot about that. We'll have to come back tomorrow."

Disappointed, but still seeing the opportunity to fill her day with something else to do, Lupin decided that they should explore the city. Syd took this as a chance to leap into the air and follow on his own accord, while Riptide remained settled on Lupin's shoulders.

"If you'll follow me, I can show ya the highlights, straight from a bird's eye view, of course," he called from above. He banked along a tail wind and soared overhead, leading the way to the north. "We'll be heading toward Sprout Tower first. It's the tallest building here in Violet City, with the Violet City Gym at a close second. I might even see some of my old flock."

He sounded excited as he continued to fly above them. Lupin stopped only once, to pause at a vendor that was hawking wares and souvenirs from the Hoenn region. There was even some tourist-y merchandise, such as hats, backpacks, t-shirts, books, and key chains that featured pokémon she'd never seen before. Syd came in for a landing, settling on the back of her pack as she pulled her pokédex out to catalogue some of the pokémon images into it. Torchic, Treeko, Mudkip, Poochyena, Zigzagoon…those were but a few of the creatures featured in the merchandise.

There were a lot of children cramming themselves to the front, pulling at some of the shirts or posters, crying out that they liked this more than that, while others complained that they liked the Johto starters better. When one of them spotted Riptide riding along her shoulders, Lupin was suddenly surrounded by the lot of them, while the hawker in his stall watched with an ironic smile tipping at his lips.

"Hey, hey lady! Which water-type starter do you like better? Totodile or Mudkip? Is it Totodile, is that why you have one, huh?"

Lupin's tail bristled under her coat and her ears pressed even tighter against her head beneath her hat. She felt like she was in a sudden assault from the ocean, lifting her arms to keep them from being latched onto. The vendor laughed and she gave an uncertain smile as Riptide pushed up to his hind legs and let out a growling hiss. It startled several of the younger children, but the bolder ones remained where they were, their eyes glistening with wonder and awe.

"Oh, wow, so cool! They get so big when they evolve, even though they start out really tiny!"

"They all do, Thomas," a little girl countered pointedly, huffing at the boy who'd spoken.

"But a Feraligatr is cool! It's a big gator! Swampert's just a mudfish, that's not cool. I want a Totodile when I can get one! Lady, where'd you get yours, did you catch it?"

"Tell them, tell them," Riptide chanted in her ear and she felt her lips curving into a dry smile. She could practically feel the excitement shimmering off of him in waves, never mind the scent of it all. Syd chirped from the back of her pack, almost akin to an impatient sigh.

"You really are a little attention seeker, aren't you?" She muttered to him, before turning to the gathered children. "Honestly, I got him at Professor Elm's lab down in New Bark Town. I'm one of his lab assistants, and I didn't really choose him so much as he chose me. He's kept a good eye on my back when I can't do it myself."

The Totodile perched on her shoulder paused in his basking of attention to tilt his head at her, pinning her with a yellow-red stare. She reached up to pat his flat skull.

"I don't know much about the other two Johto starters, I didn't get to really work with them much, and I can't say I've ever seen those Hoenn starters in action, but I like Riptide fine enough. He's…he's a good friend."

This seemed to pacify them for a few seconds, before she saw the smiling vendor frown a little at her, the spark of ire building in his eyes. She grinned nervously before waving to the kids back toward the stall. "But-but, maybe you should give new pokémon a chance, huh? I mean, that little fire bird looks cool, right?"

She managed to slip away when they were looking, trotting down the street while Syd took off again, leading the way to the Sprout Tower. It wasn't hard to see where it was any longer. As the Pidgey had promised, it was the tallest structure in town, its uniform levels and sloping rooftops coming together to form a tall imperial looking pagoda. As they ventured closer, she noticed how quiet Riptide had grown.

"You okay there?"

She heard him huff out a breath and clack his jaws.

"Did you mean what you said back there, or were you only placating those little humans?"

She thought for a moment. "You have been a pain in my ass since the day I met you. You can be rude, smug, and a very unappealing know-it-all and sometimes you don't bother being humble about it." She paused, however, letting that sink in before continuing. "But, in spite of those shortcomings…you're a pretty brave little guy. You…you didn't have to stick it out with me. I know you were scared of me since…well, since the full moon, but you stayed and…I'm grateful for that. And when you're not being a showoff and a smartass about what you know, you're smart and it shows. You spent only half a year with Professor Elm and look at what you know already. I didn't really get that impression from the other two. I don't think I could've asked for a better partner."

They were approaching the tower now, and the land around it was littered with gardens and ponds, beautiful fauna covering every spare inch of ground they could afford, all behind the pagoda's simplistic, yet graceful and elegant entryway. Syd landed on the arch high above them, peeping at them to hurry up. In the sky close to the tower, a dozen or so Pidgey fluttered about and Syd paused to watch. She saw from the agitated bouncing in his step, and the way he paced back and forth.

"You can go ahead. Go say hi to your family, Syd," she called to him. He screeched back in exhilaration and took off with an excited beat to his wings, hurtling toward the other birds. Riptide remained quiet as Lupin followed the winding trail through the garden toward the Sprout Tower. Along the base of the building, twin statues stood on either side of the doors. They were reedy and thin in body, almost akin to vines, with a bulbous, flowery head. It looked almost comical.

In the middle of her studying, Riptide bumped his skull against hers, surprising her out of her thoughts.

"You're not half bad yourself. You know. For an older trainer."

"You expected a kid to pick you up, huh?"

"Something like that," he admitted. "They're easier to manipulate. Not that you're difficult, mind."

"Hey!"

He croaked out his rattle-laugh and head-butted her gently again. "Thank you."

She smiled, turning to the doors, her hand along the handle to pull it open. "No problem, Rip. Just try to curb the smug croc act every once in a while? It makes you more endearing."

"I make no promises."

"Pain in my ass."

"Of course. You need it every once in a while."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The rest of the day turned out uneventful. The upper levels to the Sprout Tower turned out to off-limits to non-registered trainers, and even her junior lab tech license couldn't grant her access to the higher echelons. After they left and managed to call Syd back, the three wandered around, and even made a stop at the gym. However, the leader, Falkner, was out training for the day, and his junior trainees were off as well.

"Does everything stop on the weekends?"

"It's the slow season for gym leaders. Granted, not everyone comes directly to Violet City to earn their first badge. Some start in Ecruteak, others in Olivine or Cianwood or even Blackthorn City. All over Johto, in fact. There is no strict order in which you can earn your badges. Every gym leader has a rotation of teams, depending on the skillset and strength of an opposing challenger. If you had three badges, for example, he'd choose stronger pokémon team than, say, if you came at him with only Syd and me and no badges. He'd choose lower-leveled pokémon, partly as a battle tactic and partly as an instructional battle, seeing as it would be your first badge being earned."

"Sounds like a pain in the ass to maintain."

"It can be," Riptide agreed. "If you were aiming to gain badges, that is."

Lupin didn't respond to it, and he didn't press the issue. They retired for the night, with Syd perched on a newly acquired bird stand delivered to the room, while Riptide sprawled on the bed as Lupin wound down from the day's slow events. The rest of the night passed by and morning came all too soon, but Lupin was brimming with excited energy just beneath the surface. At first, she had decided to come to Violet City to attend the school course on a whim. The longer she thought on it, the more she considered its pros versus cons, she felt surer about gaining her license. And, finally at the behest and pestering from Riptide, Lupin had called the professor about her decision while they were Catallia City, but the remaining elements of paying for the course were still in the air.

After that chat, the professor had gotten off the phone, telling her he'd help take care of that issue. She hadn't heard from him since, and it didn't hit her to call him until she was standing in front of the trainer school, minutes before it was scheduled to open. Crap.

She stood there, torn between going ahead inside when it opened and hoping it was taken care of versus leaving to go somewhere private to call the professor about it.

Her decision, however, was made for her, when she heard someone rapidly approaching, long before she saw them. She turned toward the noise of puffing breathlessness to find a portly man hoofing it her way down the street. His brow was sopping wet with sweat and his hair flopped over as he came to rest by the front door, fumbling in the pockets of his slacks for keys. They tumbled out of his hands when he managed to snag them and Lupin bent quickly to pick them up.

The taller portly man paused, gaping, then cried out with a lunge toward her when she offered him back his keys.

"Oh, you must be—Professor Elm mentioned you were coming, but you're three days behind, we were expecting you so much sooner— _Mademoiselle_ Ferus, I presume, _oui_?"

He was holding her hands, and the keys shook in her hands as she contemplated ripping away from him, but she faltered at the mention of her name and the professor. Riptide hissed menacingly, snapping his jaws at the man and he laughed instead of shirking away like most would. Syd shuddered, his tail feathers whipping back and forth as he eyed the man with equal fervor and suspicion. Faintly, Lupin finally nodded. The man grinned, his cheeks still ruddy from his run.

"Oh, where are my manners—yes, of course, _Monsieur_ Earl Dervish, director and teacher for the Pokémon Academy here in Violet City. I am to teach you in the upcoming course. Professor Elm helped arrange it; I owe him a bit of a debt and hope to clear it with this favour."

"You…owe the professor?"

That seemed a little hard to believe. What kind of favour would a school teacher need to have ended up owing a famous professor?

He seemed to read her thoughts, because Dervish laughed suddenly.

"Oh, so grim, _mademoiselle_! Do not worry, _ma belle_ _étudiant_. It's just a favour to repay him for having helped me get my academy started up here in Johto. I immigrated from Kalos, but here I am now!" He smiled easily at her, and it put her somewhat at ease, especially when he finally released her hands and took his keys from her with hearty thanks and unlocked the front doors.

He waved her inside.

"Come, come! Most of your registration is almost completed, but I must have your signatures on some paperwork."

"Wait, wait. I didn't need him to do all that for me—really, I can pay at least half the course costs—"

"So grim once again, _Mademoiselle_ Ferus—this isn't for you, solely, it's also for him. He had requested this as a favour for him, and you are merely in the crossfire. Now, come with me, to my office! We don't have much time, students will be here within the hour."

"Wait, when does my course start?"

She followed after him into the building, passing through hallways of polished wood and sliding doors. Some pictures hung on the walls, a few of Earl Dervish himself with a multitude of pokémon at different points in his life. One such photograph showcased him with a male dancer's uniform on, and a large lion with a fiery-looking mane, almost as though the fur itself was made of fire, seated beside him. The lion itself was elegant and huge, with soulful yellow eyes and a healthy coat of fur that practically glowed. Dervish himself was younger, and slimmer in stature, the ideal body type one would expect of a male academy dancer. Perhaps he was in his late teens, early adulthood, but he had the same winsome smile and twinkle in his eyes in the picture as he did now.

Dervish chuckled as he noticed her straying attention and when she looked back at him, he motioned for her to follow again. She obliged, with Syd cooing quietly and preening at his feathers and Riptide craned his head to stare at the small, dark classrooms they passed by.

"All in good time—although now is as good as any time," he said, stopping before a door and slid it open. He motioned for her to step inside first and closed the door behind him as he entered after her.

"Your class starts today."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

By the end of the day, Lupin was burdened with three textbooks, a fresh notebook, writing utensils, a course outline and policy letter of expectations of her, as well as some mind-boggling concepts to wrap her head around. The first day had been an introduction of sorts to ease her into the pace of things, but surrounded by the other adults—ranging from her age, a little older, and even a little younger—and their pokémon were disconcerting enough distractions as it was. Lupin kept staring around her, only paying half her attention to the introduction of the course. She felt out of her depths there, knowing that everyone around her had more knowledge than she did.

And yet, she was grateful for the quiet translations Riptide would provide her—when he could, that is. There were times when he was silent, as though mulling over the information himself and was learning as he went just as she was. Syd remained quiet the entire time, except for the softest trill, coo, or murmur. Earl Dervish was working with the adult classes for the course, while his other teachers handled the younger generations.

Sprawling out on her bed, Lupin carefully arranged all the books, pamphlets, and paperwork she had been given. Riptide was snoozing on the werewolf's pillow as Syd pecked at the food dish that he was perched upon, occasionally pausing to glance at Lupin or Riptide. For the next hour or so since their release from class, she'd spent her time thoroughly reading through the paperwork, making marks on things she didn't quite understand or needed better clarification on.

By the end of it, she had everything put back in her pack and she laid back, expelling a long sigh. Moments later, a bony pair of jaws clacked on the top of her brow, a low hum emanating from its owner.

"Can I help you?"

"You make a good jaw rest."

"I'm sure I do."

"You're the perfect height when laying down. I'm sure when I'm bigger, you'll make a good arm rest."

"Don't push your luck," she replied, closing her eyes. "How big do Feraligatr get?"

"My mother and father were pretty big. Feraligatr in general usually are. They're taller than humans." He paused. "Most definitely taller and heavier than you ever will be."

"Even with my furry snout in place?" She grinned. He snorted.

"Even then," he replied. "When…when is the next full moon?"

"…less than a week. I made a calendar, to keep track of them all."

Riptide was quiet for a long time. Syd listened passively, and whatever comments he may have had, he kept them to himself for the time being.

"What're you going to do?"

"Might have to cut it close. Go out into the woods right after class, and hoof it back in the morning."

"You'll be exhausted," he pointed out. "We barely made it to town the day after the last time its happened."

"I know."

He made a soft noise in the back of his throat, one of discontentment, dissatisfaction. She reached up to rub at his head. "I'll be fine."

"I'm not so sure. What if you get caught? What if someone tries to fight you in the woods? What if—"

"What if I got hit by a bus while crossing the street tomorrow?"

He fell silent.

"I don't have much choice. I can't skulk around the city. Well, I mean I could, probably. But it'd probably be a piss poor decision to do so." She allowed a beat to pass. "And I'll get hungry. I don't want to accidentally hurt someone or their pokémon. There were deer out in the woods the last time. I can find some more."

"You mean Stantler? You hunted _pokémon_?" Riptide reeled in horror at first, lurching away from her. Lupin tilted her head to look at him, her brows knitting in worry.

"No, no. I don't think I did, they didn't attack me, at least. That's what would've happened if they were Stantler, right? They looked like regular deer. It didn't…it didn't have those knobby things in its antlers."

The Totodile relaxed some. There were mundane animals that lived side by side with pokémon, of course. Regular cats, dogs, fish, birds and the like ran about as rampant as pokémon did. Deer were no exception, but they weren't as crafty and wily as Stantler could get. Or so he's heard anyway, he'd never really seen them in action. They also had a tendency to steer clear of normal deer herds, although there were the occasional oddball exceptions. They'd seen the big horn pokémon roaming the forests just before they had hit Violet City, and around the fringes of the road from Cherrygrove, but they never ventured closer. He didn't know whether to believe her or not and he couldn't recall the scent of blood she'd been flecked in the morning she came back. He'd never had a whiff real good of Stantler before, but he hoped and trusted she was truthful.

"You should stick to the north, than. It's too dangerous east of here."

"I know."

"And stay away from the city. If someone saw you, they might mistake you for a pokémon."

"Rip. I know."

"No, you _don't_ know. You don't remember being what you are, you—you don't remember _anything_ about yourself, how can you sit there and say 'I know' when you _don't_?"

She stared at him, studying the blue gator, huffing with his jaws gaping open as he stared hard at her. Over to her side, Syd's wings beat furiously and an instant breeze kicked up. She felt a weight settled on her stomach and she looked up, distracted. The Pidgey stared back at her, head cocked to the side.

"I don't know much of what's going on or what you're planning, Lady, but you should know that you don't have to pretend that things are all right with you if they ain't." He hopped closer. "Leatherhead over there's got a point. If you don't know something, it's all right to admit something. Saying you know something when you really don't, it can land you in a heap of trouble. Just lookit the mess at the Dark Cave and that Onix. We nearly got crushed like a buncha Weedle and Caterpie. I'm not saying it was entirely your fault, but you made the decision to stay there for the night. You're the trainer. We look to you, ya know? But we get to put in our word about things. Or at least, we should."

He tilted his head to the other side, ignoring the mutters from Riptide in response to the 'leatherhead' name.

"I dunno what a werewolf is, or what it entails to, or what's gonna happen…but if you need us, just ask. Don't try to keep it all locked up inside ya. Could get messy later on. My cousin Vinny had troubles like that. Bad ending." He paused. "So why don't ya start fillin' me in? You been kinda quiet on the whole nonhuman business concerning you and those perky li'l ears and bushy tail of yours there."

Lupin hesitated, her tongue pressed to the roof of her mouth as she regarded the little bird for a while longer. Her ears had pressed against her head over the course of his little speech and the Pidgey chuckled, hopping forward again to tug at her bangs.

"Ah, don't look so glum. Everybody needs help sometimes. Even blue boy over there."

The werewolf smiled and brought a hand up to cup the back of the bird's body, and she got a good whiff of feather dust. He gave another playful tug of her hair. She sighed.

"Okay, just…bear with me, okay?" She paused to reach for her bag, yanking out the Book. Syd fluttered back to his stand as she sat up and Riptide crawled into her lap, resting his jaw on her knee. She rubbed at the back of his head, her fingers running along each bump and dip of his back's hard, protective plating. She glanced back up at Syd and motioned to the book.

"This is…kind of where I know a little about myself. But not as much as I'd like…"

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	16. Lost

**Chapter Fifteen:  
Lost**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves._ **  
-Henry David Thoreau**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“What’s taking her so long? She’s gonna be late for class.”

“Hold on to your tail feathers. I’ll go check.”

“Does this always happen?”

Riptide paused at the partially shut bathroom door to glance back at Syd on his stand. The Pidgey was dancing to and fro agitatedly, his feathers fluffing and re-fluffing as he did so.

“I’m not sure. I think so,” he admitted, suddenly feeling uncertain. Perhaps he should have made it more his business to learn what he could about werewolves. If this was going to happen every full moon, he’d need a counteractive plan to help where he could. Even with what little he knew, he felt Lupin was withholding more information than she was willing to share.

Riptide waddled forward on all fours toward the bathroom door and pushed it open with his snout. Inside was humid and hot, which he found pleasant. The mirror was fogged up and steam rose from the shower. The curtain was drawn back and he could see Lupin’s silhouette from behind it, moving rather slowly.

“You’re going to be late,” he called above the shower’s noise.

“I heard you two bickering back and forth,” she muttered back. He snorted.

“Then you’ll know that you’re going to be late,” he repeated more firmly. “Hurry it up.”

“I’m almost done. Hold your horses,” Lupin yawned. Moments later, the shower cut short, and an arm snaked out from behind the curtain to snatch up a warm, fluffy towel from the sink counter. Riptide waited, somewhat loathe to leave the warm cocoon of the bathroom’s humid heat. It felt pleasant against his scales and was a rather enjoyable temperature for him. Why couldn’t the rest of this blasted city be like this? At least the spring showers should be behind them, and soon, the ushering of summer would be underway and the heat would pick up. He couldn’t wait for it.

But, he finally relented and waddled back out of the bathroom as Lupin slowly dressed in the bathroom. She’d had to replace her muddy clothes the night they’d arrived in Violet City; they had been stained too badly to recover. Now she was dressed in a plain black shirt with dark cargo pants, and the newness of it all was rather evident by the lack of wear and tear on them, as well as that crisp, clean look of off-the-shelf freshness they exuded. She sighed as she fumbled to get her coat on, then her hat, and lastly, her pack. It was mainly empty of her camping supplies now, hosting instead her class supplies, and of course, the Togepi egg Professor Elm had entrusted to her to hatch.

As soon as she was set, they left the housing room in the Pokémon Center and made for the academy. Riptide and Syd were both brimming with unbridled agitation and energy, their anxiety having kept them up most of the night. What little sleep they caught while lounging in the room alone for the night had been fitful and broken. Now they were beginning to feel that energy drain out of them as the werewolf made her way around the few blocks to get to the academy. Before they made for the final block where the school was, however, Lupin made a pit stop at the Wooper Café down the street from the center.

Pokémon treats, breakfast, and coffee: the ultimate trifecta.

“You’re almost an hour late, you realize,” Riptide offhandedly mentioned as they exited the shop nearly ten minutes later. Lupin paused mid-sip with her coffee. Then she calmly finished, took in a breath, and let it out just as slowly.

“…Shit.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The next passing week went by uneventfully. Notes were taken, slideshows were shown, and a test was conducted, as it was outlined in the class curriculum. It became clear, after the first few days, who were the sharp tacks of the class and who needed just a little more effort put into them to get the class material.

Even without her two pokémon’s input, Lupin was easing her way rather smoothly into the class, minus the hiccup on the day she was late. Riptide was impressed. Syd didn’t have much to reference her off of, so he was just as impressed with the entire thing.

“You could easily be the top of the class,” the gator commented in the middle of the second week. Lupin was lounging in a chair in the lobby of the Pokémon Center, a book propped open in her lap and a notebook on top of that. Half a page was already filled out with extensive answers to a sheet of questions that sat underneath the notebook. Lupin glanced at the Totodile. Syd was perched on the blue gator’s head, and he peered into one of Riptide’s yellow-red eyes.

“Think she could be?”

“I don’t see why not. She’s catching onto the material faster. Impressive…for someone who has an empty head, that is.”

“Har, har. Forgetful jokes again?”

“I won’t let you off easily,” Riptide remarked offhandedly. He bobbed his snout toward the paperwork in her lap. “Question seven, you’re almost done with it. Let’s hurry up and get it finished with so we can get some chow. The cafeteria closes in less than an hour.”

“Then, why don’t we take a break? I don’t want to end up with scraps again, or worse, no food at all or we’ll have to go back out in town.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“The food here is relatively cheaper than going out in town,” Lupin remarked.

“You people and your currency. You’d think you’d be happy just trading a rawst berry here, an oran or cherri berry there. Instead you got this coin and dollar system going on. No wonder you rob each other, it’s all shiny and attractive. You guys should just get rid of it and go back to the berry trading system. We pokémon don’t have any troubles with that.”

“Money doesn’t degrade or rot away when left alone for long periods of time. Berries do, birdbrain.”

“Oi.”

“Right, right. Sorry…” Riptide snorted, before he moved to clamber up Lupin’s arm and up her shoulder. Syd jumped and hovered in the air, his little wings beating fast until he angled in for a quick landing on Lupin’s other shoulder. She gathered up her things and stored them back in her pack, shuffling off toward the cafeteria. The rest of the evening passed without much incident, up until Lupin was rereading through her class curriculum. She stopped in her perusing, caught up on a future upcoming class: properly catching a pokémon.

“Oh.”

“What’s ‘oh’? Is that a good ‘oh’ or a bad ‘oh’?”

She motioned to the paperwork she was reviewing. Riptide glanced at her pointing index finger, then back at her face.

“I can’t read human language. I told you this before.”

“Then what about that book I was reading back at the professor’s lab a few months back?”

“What book?”

“You know. That battle tactics book. The one I was reading back when I had babysitting duties in pastures with you lot.”

It took a moment for it to click, but she saw it in his eyes when they did.

“That? I heard Phillip mentioning it when I came over.”

“Likely story.”

“I really can’t read this, Lupin,” he motioned a paw toward the sheet of paper. “Now what are you ‘oh’-ing about?”

“That’s not a word,” Lupin pointed out.

“Just tell us already, we’re quivering with anticipation, Lady,” Syd called over. He snickered when Lupin shot him a glare. She settled down, however, casting her eyes back onto the paperwork.

“We’re supposed to catch a minimum of two pokémon on Friday in a field demonstration trip. It’ll be a part of our grade.”

“Is that all you’re worried about? You’ll be fine.” Syd took off to swirl lazily in the air above them. Lupin held up a hand for him to land. As she pulled him in closer, he took initiative to leap onto her shoulder and burrow up against her neck and under her hair. “You caught that rock snake just fine. Or close to ‘fine’ as you’ll ever get. A little Bellsprout or something will be a cinch.”

“No, I’m not worried about that.”

“Then what?” Syd inquired further. She leaned against the headboard, the bed’s pillow wedged under the small of her back.

“I can’t really defend against what if scenarios and it’d be a bit dumb if I over-prepared.”

“Potions, extra pokéballs, and a good amount of antidotes, paralyze heals, and some awakening bottles as well. That’s about as prepared as you can be at your level.”

Lupin hummed noncommittally.

“I’ll keep it in mind,” she finally said, glancing toward the window. The soft glow of Violet City brushed against the glass pane, echoing off the white curtains framing it. The werewolf got up to pull them shut. “So, how about a movie break? We got _Rock Monster Lake_ or _The Jynx Curse_.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Come back here, you little thief!”

The rusty orange and black striped dog was fast, pumping his little legs to propel him forward as fast as they could go. But the girl was fast, even when she was weighed down by her travel pack and that blue gator of hers. He thought he was in the clear when he ducked into an alley a block away and hid between two dumpsters—but then that nosy little Pidgey came screeching around his head and pecking at his nose and eyes. He yelped and spit flames to scare off the Pidgey. The little bird squawked indignantly, surprised and annoyed all at once.

“Over here, he’s over here!” He cried once he’d gathered his bearings.

_Uh-oh._

He whimpered through the little package in his mouth, darting down the alleyway to escape and make it back to his master. Just around the corner of that little café that girl and her pokémon—and oh so many other trainers—often haunted nearly every morning. But he was fast, faster than any human, even if this particular one was faster than the usual ones he was used to encountering. He went for broke, feeling pure energy speed him along. The wind rushed through his fur, roared in his ears, and filled his lungs as he spurred himself forward on quick little paws. He almost felt like a true Arcanine, even if he was only one grubby little Growlithe in reality. It didn’t hurt to daydream a little for the day he evolved, did it?

He imagined he was rushing along as the larger canine, outpacing all footrace opponents. He imagined even overtaking the Legendaries themselves, past Raikou and Entei and even the lovely Suicune. He dreamed he and his master would one day live in a big home with lots of space and room to move around, with lots of food and drink, and a roof over their heads like they used to. A cardboard box wasn’t all that fun when it rained, after all. Especially for him.

He darted behind homes and through backyards, doubling back through front yards and alleyways between buildings. Violet City’s back ways were his home turf, not some outsider passing through. He could shake anyone. And yet…he was starting to doubt himself and lose all sense of hope at this perpetually annoying mark. She was fast too. She wasn’t relenting or giving up—it was only a measly pastry!—and seemed determined to catch him. The thought of returning to his master came unbidden and already his legs were pumping fast to propel him back to the safety of his master.

The little Growlithe yowled in surprise when a gush of water scored his side and soaked his fur. It almost tripped him up, but he recovered quickly, tumbling through a fence opening in another back alley between buildings. That stupid little Totodile. Maybe he shouldn’t have marked a trainer with a water-type. That would’ve been smart, but he was so hungry, and so was his master.

He began doubling back to the café, finally feeling his legs dwindling in energy, his adrenaline slowly flagging. It picked up a bit at the big overhanging sign of the coffee shop, however, with the little Wooper relaxing in a coffee cup. Ugh. Woopers. Those happy-go-lucky little water-types thought spraying him in the face was funny. He _hated_ that!

 _Not now, not now_ , he reminded himself, flying past a woman walking her Snubbull. The woman shrieked in surprise, and the Snubbull shouted at him to watch where he was going. He glanced over his shoulder to see the other woman was still chasing him and that Totodile was glaring at him from his perch on her shoulder. His heart sank briefly and he turned his head back around, and his heart came right back up, enlightened, at the familiar sight of his little cardboard box home and his master sitting right outside it. He tried to yelp, to warn him, but it came out strangled when something caught up in his legs, making him tumble over his own paws. The bag flew from his mouth as he somersaulted several times over himself. His back struck hard concrete. His paws flailed. He bonked his head a few times. Everything, plainly speaking, was hurting by the time he came to rest just at his master’s feet.

He whimpered, licking at one of his offended paws, but paused when he felt a gentle hand on his head, and a soft chuckle filled his ears. It was interrupted by a short fit of coughs, but then the chuckles came back again.

“There you are, Bullet. I was wondering where you’d gone. Were you off causing mischief again?”

He looked up at his master’s face, saw those blue eyes crinkling in amusement. He whined again and licked at the hand on his head. His white beard was as snowy as he remembered it, and his weathered hands continued to stroke his head. It felt good and he leaned into the touch, sighing, feeling safe once more.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I know you were hungry, I wanted to get you something, but I—the bag!”

He whipped his head around to find the woman and her Totodile and Pidgey standing in the alleyway, the pastry bag clamped in her hands. She was frozen, however, staring at him and his master. Her face was unreadable, but the Totodile was hissing low in his throat, yellow-red eyes boring into him. The Pidgey was busy preening his feathers. Some of them were singed and he was muttering about it and would occasionally shoot him a nasty glare.  

“Oh.” The woman said, dropping her gaze to her bag.

“Bullet…were you stealing again? I thought I told you to knock that nasty habit off.”

He winced when a finger flicked his ear. The sting took a few moments to wear off and he whimpered, dropping his head on his paws.

“I’m sorry…but I didn’t want you to starve, I just wanted to get you something to eat!” He knew his voice fell on deaf ears, however. His master couldn’t understand his tongue any better than that woman could. People just couldn’t seem to understand pokémon, even when they were speaking as plainly as they were. He could understand them all just fine, but it was all about _body language_ to them. _That_ they got, but not plain words…

“I’m so sorry, ma’am, about my Growlithe. I don’t know where he gets the idea that it’s alright to steal from people. I’ve told him time and again not to do it, but…”

“No, no, really, I didn’t realize it was for you—”

“Nonsense. I won’t take your food. He knows better.”

He peeped up to see his master giving him a rather reproachful look. Bullet dropped his face to bury it under his paws again. At least the woman wasn’t having her Totodile hit him with that water gun attack again. Not in front of his master. He whined again, peering up at her between his paws, and he froze when he saw her staring at him. Not glaring or huffing or hatefully like some people are wont to do when they spied him with his homeless master. It was pity. It was warmth. It was understanding. He lifted his head just a bit, cocking his head to the side.

It has been so long since someone has shown him that look, aside from his master. Most people ignored the two of them, going along their business, pretending they weren’t there. Some offered money, or food, yes, but it was always done hurriedly. There was the local shelter for the homeless, yes, but his master didn’t like staying there. Others have tried stealing his few belongings. One even tried to steal _him_. But the workers there hardly ever looked at him or his master; they didn’t really _see_ them, not like this, and not in a long while.

The woman hesitated, her brow drawing up in concern and she looked at her Totodile. They seemed to exchange a silent message to one another, because before he knew it, the bag was being pressed toward him.

“Here. No, really, you two could use it more than us.”

“Ma’am, please, I—”

She shook her head, stepping back when his master picked the bag up and tried to hand it back. Sometimes he wondered why his master had to be so damned honourable and so…so _nice_. Why couldn’t he just take the food and be happy that someone else was nice and stupid enough to give it away? He whimpered at her, at him, at the whole situation. He was so confused. First that lady chased him for the food he’d taken; now she was freely giving it up. People were strange.

She was backing away now, shaking her head one last time and then she was gone, slipping around the corner of the building. He stared after her long after she’d gone, before good sense finally hit him and he glanced back at his master. At first, it looked as though his master was staring after the woman too, but the glazed look in his eyes told Bullet better. He’d forgotten about the encounter, the bag, everything. Again. Just like yesterday. Just like the day before that, and the day before that…

The little Growlithe had forgotten himself how long ago this had all started, now that he thought about it. It’s been so long since his master had begun forgetting things. It was small at first. But then it grew to be more and more things. Now, here they were.

Bullet picked it up and dropped it in his master’s lap. It startled him, but he recovered quickly and patted him on the head, sighing deeply.

“Perhaps we should go to the park today, yes? It’s a lovely day, Bullet. Oh, what’s this? Did you bring me food? Aren’t you a wonderful pokémon, thank you.”

Bullet whined, his ears pressing against his head, laying his head on his master’s knee as he dug into the pastry within. He broke half of it off and gave it to the Growlithe and he ate it halfheartedly. It didn’t taste as appetizing as it had smelled anymore.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“You shouldn’t have fed that homeless man. For all you know, it was a scam.”

“For all you know, he really is homeless and lives out of a cardboard box on a good day when the weather’s cooperating.”

Riptide snorted, but said nothing further. They were late to class—again. This wasn’t a good message to send to the teacher. Even if Lupin was in the top of the class. That alone was probably what was saving her from being sent out to the wringer. She was smart, smarter than Riptide had expected. She blew the others out of the water when it came to grasping tactics, strategies, identification, typing, so on and so forth. When they arrived at the academy, they were only ten minutes late—a step up over the last time. Mr. Dervish only gave them a passing, reproachful look, but he didn’t stop his lesson. Lupin quickly caught up and soon was delving into her work, although Riptide could tell from the way she worried her bottom lip that she wasn’t entirely focused on it. He didn’t say anything, and neither did Syd, surprisingly. The Pidgey loved to yammer on in her ear, but today, he was unusually quiet.

The hours passed and then they were released for the day, burdened with another load of paperwork to be completed by the end of the week. Some of the other adults lingered to chat with one another, but Lupin was the first out the door.

“You have a look on your face. I don’t like that look. It means you’re going to do something stupid.”

“You don’t know that,” Lupin replied to him. Riptide hissed at her.

“I know you well enough to determine that much. Don’t. Please don’t go back to that homeless man, he might have moved on already.”

“You don’t know that, either.”

“I knew it, it was something stupid. You’re going to feed him again, aren’t you?” He groaned. Syd flapped his wings on the other shoulder.

“What’s a matter with helping people? There ain’t nothing wrong with that.” Syd chirped back, ruffling his feathers.

“There is when it eats away at our funds and doesn’t replenish itself or serve us any purpose. That dirty, thieving Growlithe seems to get them by just fine. We just have to make sure we don’t get caught up in his sights again.”

“Sheesh, any other insults you’d like to add to the pile, Rip?” Lupin clucked her tongue and gazed at him pointedly. When nothing else was forthcoming, she sighed. “I’m so disappointed in you. Why would you want me to turn my back on this?”

“Because we don’t live here? Because…they aren’t our problem? Because we aren’t staying here for long, and their problems are long-term, and won’t be magically fixed just because we helped them for a day or two? Take your pick?”

She scowled, but he saw that some of what he said seemed to sink in. Her pace had slowed down until she stopped, just half a block away from the Wooper Café, where they often frequented. He spotted the Growlithe before she did. When she finally saw him, the Growlithe lifted his gaze, as though finally catching on that he was being watched and he froze, blue eyes wide.

“Don’t. Don’t, don’t—aaaand you’re moving toward him. Wonderful.”

“Be nice,” she chided.

“He’s a _thief_. He stole from you. Ergo, he’s a bad dog.”

“Hush. He was getting food for his trainer.”

“Oh, so then that’s all right. Stealing to feed your starving, homeless trainer is an acceptance to the rules. Okay, then, _so_ glad we sorted that out.” Riptide remarked with a scoff.

“Oh-ho, look who’s getting all high n’ mighty, Mr. Big Shot Lab Pokémon. Don’t judge a pokémon by their skin. Don’t you know that by now?” Syd huffed, ruffling his tail feathers and fluffing his wings. The Growlithe was watching them carefully now, his body tense and alert, looking ready to bolt at the first chance.

“With that said, Lady…it might be best to leave the little guy alone. It’s obvious he’s done this too many times to learn and his trainer ain’t doing much to stop him outside of a verbal scolding. If you can even call it that. The old man didn’t look too hot, either. He might not have too long before he goes.” The little bird paused, then added, “Plus, he singed my feathers! Granted, I can get that fixed at the center later, but still. It’s _annoying_.”

Lupin paused, her steps faltering until she stopped altogether. Her eyes darted between the tense puppy pokémon and the alleyway in which she knew his elderly master was. He continued to watch her and she stared right back. His fur was matted in some places, although it looked like he had attempted to clean it.

“Let’s just get to the center. I guarantee there’s been some kind of complaint around town about that homeless mongrel pup. He’ll get caught, his master will be put in a home, and that’ll be the end of that. Why he isn’t already, I have no idea. Dumb luck, I suppose,” Riptide said, nudging her cheek with his snout. That gave her a bit of a jolt and her ears pressed tighter against her head.

“I was a homeless mongrel until you and the professor brought me to the lab, for all you know. Maybe that’s why no one can find any records of me. Ever thought of that?”

She was met with stunned silence as she continued walking. The Growlithe didn’t give her a chance to get close to him. He trotted away, his tail tucked against his legs and his ears flat against his head. He was gone from sight when she came to the opening in the alleyway, but she could hear him whining. She continued on toward the center, the other two on her shoulders just as quiet.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

 


	17. Found

**Chapter Sixteen:  
Found**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Don’t grieve. Anything you lose comes round in another form.  
_ **-Rumi**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“So, today, we will be putting our studies to the test, and demonstrate how to properly catch a pokémon! Today’s assignment will require the capture the minimum of _two_ pokémon, as opposed to the minimum of _one_ for children and young teenagers, since this is an advanced class.”

It was a balmy, warm day but the shade above from the trees helped shield most of the sun’s rays from the gathered group below. It was earlier than usual that they had met up at the schoolhouse so that they could travel here in a timely fashion. The vans that had transported them sat now, quiet and waiting, at the end of a dirt road further behind them. The eighteen adults in the class were gathered in a school circle around Mr. Dervish as he motioned to the vast wilderness before them. The particular woods they had adjourned to was north of Violet City.

“We normally take our class to the east of the city, but due to the unrest at the Dark Cave, as well as the forest’s semi-local spider populations, it should be relatively simple why we’re avoiding those areas for now.” He chuckled, wagging a finger in the air. The various pokémon partners of the students shuffled about near or on their trainers, glancing around their surroundings. They heard and smelled things their trainers could not, saw things that they were blind to, with the exception of one.

Lupin’s ears careful shifted beneath her hat, picking on the whisperings, comings, and goings of the wild creatures around them. She could smell those that crossed paths with the downwind breezing past them, could see the faint, subtle shifts in the trees, the bushes that the others weren’t paying particular attention to. She even noticed the tracks of several native pokémon along the grounds on occasion. Her own scent was still marked in the area, from her time hunting earlier last week. The blood from her kill hadn’t quite faded, either.

Her mind drifted back to the lesson, as Mr. Dervish continued on his mundane lecture.

“What do you think we could get? A Stantler? Or maybe one of them big bears, what’re they called? Ursaring?” Syd whispered, his feathers fluttering and fluffing every once in a while. He shivered with excitement.

“I doubt an Ursaring. Maybe a young Stantler if we’re lucky. We’re more likely to run into the more common pokémon. The usual rounds of bug, flying, and normal-types.”

“Then I suppose one of the Legendaries is out of the line of possibilities too, then?” Syd goaded with a snicker. Riptide huffed indignantly and muttered under his breath, but managed to keep his nasty comments to himself. The Pidgey laughed a little more until Lupin shushed him. “What? You can hear him just fine, even above my yammering.”

She shushed him again, even at the expense of a few stares thrown her way. Before long, a demonstration was shown after a Sentret scurried past them. Mr. Dervish fielded a few more questions that some of the others had before letting them turn to.

“Meet back here at sunset. If you get lost, please blow the whistles you were each given. I will send out my Pidgeotto to find and escort you back here. If I do not hear it, however, please set up a call line until it reaches here. Try to use your compasses as best you can, though, so we don’t have to worry about you getting turned around. If your pokémon are too injured to continue in today’s activity, blow your whistle so that my Pidgeotto can escort you all the same.”

With that said, the others took off in their own directions, most in groups, others in pairs. Lupin watched as they all scurried off their way. She tucked the whistle into her pocket and pretended to consult her compass, disappearing into the underbrush, before pocketing that as well. Syd took to the air, occasionally flitting through tree branches, but staying within sight. Riptide settled more comfortably on Lupin’s shoulders, clacking his jaws.

“Is there any particular pokémon you think we should put on the team? Or do you think we should just catch and go?”

“I’m not sure. North of Violet City is generally untouched wilderness between here and Mahogany Town’s mountainous regions. There are the Rangers who often go through here, but other than that…it’s new territory. Even the professor isn’t sure if all the pokémon that live there have been catalogued and discovered. There could be new species living here.”

“Ah, shows what you know, lab rat. Listen, there ain’t no new species you haven’t seen before living in here. It’s the deeper wilds you should look to, but we ain’t going that far. Sentret, Rattata, Pidgey, Stantler, Bellsprout, Nidoran, the whole platoon of bug-types…you ain’t gonna find nothing unique about them. Speaking of, I think I see a Nidoran wandering up ahead, just a second, lemme check it out.”

He took off in a flash, leaving the werewolf and Totodile behind. Lupin removed her hat. Riptide nipped at her fingers when he noticed.

“Hey!”

“What do you think you’re doing? Put that back on before someone sees you.”

“Excuse you, you rude blue lizard,” she chided, withdrawing her fingers to suck at them. She tasted no blood, even when she thought she felt him break skin. She inspected her fingers, found no cuts or punctures.

_Werewolves have advanced healing_ , she remembered her book saying. Just how advanced was it, though, she wondered.

Riptide smacked her cheek with a paw. “Put it back!”

“I’ll hear someone if they come. Just let me have this one day with my ears out. I can move a lot quieter than those people can.”

She watched him from the corner of her eye, and when he hissed, her ears gave a twitch. Lupin waited until the hiss petered out and Riptide grumbled, “Fine. Don’t come running to me when you get caught, though.”

She reached up and patted his head and he grumbled some more. Syd came sailing back in, fluttering in front of them.

“False alarm. They ran off. Nidoran are easily spooked sometimes, especially the female ones. The males are littler feistier, but not always. I think I saw some Caterpie and Weedle over in the trees, though. Want me to knock one down so you can nab it?”

“What do you think?”

“A bug?” Riptide shifted on her shoulder, sighing. “It’s a good start. The requirements didn’t necessarily have a limit on the kind of pokémon we’re catching. We’re not being rated, either, except with the minimum requirement. Plus, we have antidote in case of poisoning from the Weedle or any other number of poisonous insects out here.”

“Then I’m going for it. Let’s catch a bug!”

“Can I have one of the others as a snack? I’m starving!”

“Ewww. Gross, Syd.”

“What? They got lots of protein! You should try one!”

“Syd, I will recall you if you make me toss my cookies. Just sayin’.”

“Shutting up now.”

“Good boy.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The arid and dusty air of the canyon filled his nose, and the searing heat was not a comfort either. There wasn’t a cloud in the wide blue sky, and the browns, tans, grays, and sandy tones of the canyon below swam before him. Hidden niches and crevices were in abundance. It was deathly quiet, but his sensitive ears picked up on the occasional skitter and rustling of stones loosening in the canyon below from the local creatures that inhabited it. He could also hear, on occasion when the wind carried it, the sounds of voices and battles.

He scanned the skies again, finally picking up on a familiar shape riding the high sky breezes.

A dark form stirred beside him, distracting him momentarily. He sighed, reaching out toward the dark canine that plopped down and yawned.

“Ares,” he greeted. The Houndoom beside him sighed, leaning into the hand reaching out to him.

“I doubt she’d be down there. Doesn’t seem the place she’d go skulking about.”

“No, but I also doubt she’d think inside the box, either. She’d probably like it if people thought that. She seems to have a knack for getting into trouble about as often as she is to getting right out of it.”

The Houndoom snorted, but a canine grin decorated his black lips. “True. But then again, she isn’t my mate, so I don’t have as many tabs to keep on her as you do.”

Alastor took Ares’ lead in sighing, looking back up to the sky, seeing the avian form he’d spotted earlier making a nose dive right for them.

“Incoming,” Ares muttered, getting back this feet. Alastor did the same, just as the giant bird came screeching in for a landing, wide wings opening suddenly to slow her descent. He lifted an arm, letting the red and gray feathered bird to land on his arm.

“Feng, good to see you again.”

“Alastor,” the bird dipped her head to him and fluttered her wings. “I saw some trainers marching through the canyon on foot, but none that looked like the woman you’re looking for. And there’s a facility further in. Looks like a training center of some sort. Lots of people were wearing these suits and gliding around the canyon further in, too. Sky battlers.”

“Well, then that means we’re not alone, like I suspected.” He turned his gaze back to the canyon. “That also means we can find some more information down at that center.”

The large bird tilted her head at him and chirped. “But…she isn’t there.”

“It doesn’t mean she might not have passed through here. Training facilities usually have regular staff. If she passed through, they might know about it.”

“Right, that would make sense.” She fluttered her wings again and ruffled her tail feathers. “I can keep an eye from up high again, if you’d like.”

He nodded and the Talonflame took off at the inclination, rising up higher and higher until she was a mere pinprick in the sky. Ares watched her go with another snort, then turned his snout downward to the bottom of the chasm below. “I see a footpath we can take. Shouldn’t take too long to get through this place to that training center.”

He hopped down from his flat perch, large paws practicing rather dainty movements to traverse over the loose stones and shifty earth he’d chosen to travel down with barely a disturbance. But Alastor could see just below them both the footpath he’d spied earlier. He followed the Houndoom, moving with just as much grace, adjusting accordingly to the place he’d put his feet. Ares scrambled across the surface of a craggy boulder, only a few steps ahead of Alastor before he landed on the footpath. Alastor heard the movement beneath him only a split second after he’d landed where the dark pokémon had been moments before. Then he felt the boulder shifting around beneath him.

“Ah, hell,” he growled. Ares barked, his lips peeled back menacingly to show off his glinting white fangs. Alastor jumped out of reach just as the boulder-sans-pokémon swiped at him with its longer pair of arms. He was already well out of reach by the time the Graveler registered him completely. He landed on the footpath beside Ares, suddenly brimming with coiled energy.

“It’s a Graveler!”

“Yeah, I can see that.”

“Might wanna step back, then, it’s about to get hotter in here!”

Ares threw back his head and breathed deep, the spark in his chest growing hot, his body doubly so as flames spit out between the crevices of his ribs and from his gaping maw. Embers flew freely and Alastor took a step back from the inflamed pokémon. Ares snarled and flames gushed from his jaws and hit the rock pokémon point blank, superheating its stony hide. The Graveler batted at the flames until the fiery attack subsided, confused at first. It shifted to and fro on its stumpy limbs as it crushed pebbles into dust beneath its heavy weight. It continued grumbling in annoyance as its rocky hide slowly cooled while the wind blew against it.

The two intruders were gone. There was no man, there was no fire dog. Only the canyon, the sky, and the hill it was currently on.

Finally the Graveler let off a bellow and burrowed back down into its spot, intent on finishing its nap.  

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It was nearly dusk when they came across the Bellsprout within the final quarter mile before the checkpoint. It’s bulbous, comical head was stock still, while its reedy little body of vines and roots and leaves weaved back and forth in the soft wind. It was a surprisingly graceful little plant creature. It hadn’t seemed to notice her presence yet, and she would have preferred it that way. Syd shifted on her shoulder, mirroring her quiet excitement by dancing along her shoulder. Riptide hissed quietly against her cheek, his jaws gaping open.

“Syd, use gust,” she finally whispered. The Pidgey leapt into the air and flapped his little wings, hard and fast, aiming the attack at the Bellsprout. It shrieked in protest and surprise, taken aback as its peaceful lull was shattered so abruptly.

Despite its earlier grace at bending and bobbing with the breeze, like a leaf caught in a wind current, it was now tumbling over itself over the grassy knoll it had settled into for the evening. The Bellsprout was upright in no time, however, and extended vines from its leafy upper limbs, willing them to grow like whips. It lashed out when it saw Syd hovering in the air, but the Pidgey dove, gracefully weaving between the vine whip attacks aimed for him. Lupin pushed forward, ducking under a branch to step into the clearing. The Bellsprout did a double take, momentarily stunned at her presence. Syd used the distraction to hit it with another well aimed gust and followed up with a hard tackle. The Bellsprout let off another indignant shriek and unleashed another barrage of vine whips from beneath its leaves.

“That’s it, Syd, you got him on the ropes!”

“Nothin’ to it! A little smack here, a hit there, then bada-bing, bada-boom, you bagged yourself a Bellsprout! Maybe they’ll even let ya into the Sprout Tower after this! Those monks love these little weeds.”

He deftly avoided another vine ripping through the air. The aerial display continued on, with the occasional pause for attack, but from the way he kept slowing down, Syd was finally peaking with exhaustion. She was reluctant to send out Riptide, however. He had type disadvantage, and he was just as tired, from the way he slumped on her shoulders, watching with half-lidded eyes. And the other pokémon were exhausted from their own battling endeavors with her two main teammates.

_Maybe I could step in. A small ember should be enough to corral it in, keep it from attacking._

She opened her mouth, ready to recall the Pidgey, when a paw on her cheek stopped her.

“You have that ‘ _I’m going to do something stupid_ ’ look on your face again. Don’t. Whatever it is, don’t. Just send me in.”

“But you—”

“Have type disadvantage, yes. I’m sure you came to the same conclusion. But I have more energy than him. Send me out before he gets too hurt.”

She turned back to the battle. The Bellsprout was tiring just as much as Syd was. He caught her eye after executing a series of loop-de-loops, and hovered high above the ground, his wings beating slower than usual.

“You callin’ it, Lady?”

“I don’t think you need to go out there, Rip. It might be ready to catch.” Turning back to Syd, she nodded. That was enough for him. She produced one of the empty pokéballs in her coat pocket, clicking the button in its center to enlarge it. The Bellsprout was moving at a rickety, pained pace. It paused in its vine whip attacks to rest, although it looked severely wilted. Riptide eyed it carefully, his jaws clacking together a few times.

“Perhaps,” he finally conceded. “Do it quickly before it gets its second wind, though. They really are like weeds. They come back stronger than the last time you uproot them if you let them.”

She didn’t need anything else to goad her into throwing the red and white orb in her hand. It smacked the Bellsprout right in its bulbous head, the ball splitting open upon contact. Energy and light sucked the creature inside, and the pokéball dropped onto the grassy ground. It wiggled and the white strip along its circumference glowed as it did. Lupin sighed, taking her eyes off it briefly to motion to Syd to come back down. He fluttered closer, thankful for the reprieve.

A vine snaked its way upwards and yanked the little bird out of the air seconds before he landed on Lupin’s outreached hand. He let out a surprised squawk as he was pulled forcefully to the ground with a hard slam. Riptide let out a stunned growl. Lupin stiffened, momentarily taken aback. Her eyes flew to the pokéball first, believing the Bellsprout must have sprung loose, but it lay still and quiet, untouched. A pair of Bellsprout were slinking into view, ripe and ready for a fight. Another pair came crawling over a log, their reedy bodies swaying to and fro in a nonexistent breeze. Some were hanging from the trees, slithering down the trunks and branches. One went by the pokéball sitting in the knoll and rolled it with one of its reedy appendages. It remained as still and quiet as before, largely undisturbed.

The little horde turned their attention to the struggling Pidgey flopping on the ground, squeaking and chirping in pain and shock. Lupin’s heart hammered away in her ribcage and slowly rose to her throat when she saw the awkward way Syd’s wing was bent.

Indignation arose and she stalked forward with a snarl building in her throat. Fury bubbled in her stomach and rose up to drive itself into her limbs, white-hot adrenaline demanding to be released. She felt that fire building up again, like the night the Onix had attacked. She was tired of hordes of spiders, rock snakes, and now little vined weeds, attacking her. Riptide let out a snarl, momentarily diverting the Bellsprouts’ attention to them. One of them bobbed back and forth, but before it could deliver an attack, a torrent of water blew it away. The Bellsprout shrieked as it flew. The others whipped their tendrils out at the werewolf and Totodile in response, forgetting about the Pidgey in their distraction.

A sheet of flames sprung up before the vines reached her and too late, they hit the fiery barrier. Screeches arose in a unified chorus behind the wall. In between the flickering tongues, she and Riptide spied the Bellsprout fleeing as fast as they could, trailing smoke in their wake. Riptide panted beside her, and she could feel his heart speeding up as it pounded against her shoulder. Nervousness and fear eked out from the reptile and in that instant, she reached out to will the flames to die. They fled as quickly as they had come, leaving the grass singed at their feet and the knoll completely and eerily empty.

There was no Syd, only the pokéball.

Icy dread began to form in the center of her gut, hard and tight like a knot. It kept twisting over itself, harder and harder until it made her feel sick.

“Syd?”

Her ears flicked at the noise of desperate struggle and cries, not far from her and Riptide. Her body was moving before her thoughts could catch up, instinct driving her towards the sounds. A hand dove to swipe up the prone pokéball as she went.

“Hang on, we’re coming, Syd!”

“Stupid birdbrain, why wasn’t he watching his back—”

“Not now, Rip, just—there he is!”

A Bellsprout was tugging along the injured Pidgey with it, its skinny appendages coiled around the little bird. His injured wing was pinned to his side, awkward angle and all, and no amount of snipping his sharp beak at his captor was doing enough damage to make it release him. His energy was waning, even with adrenaline pumping itself into his tiny body.

When it noticed her crashing along after them, the Bellsprout sprung into action, twisting its thin body around to lash out at her. Riptide leapt from her shoulder, gashing his jaws around the vines, yanking them down Lupin before they could hit her. The flower pokémon howled, trying to tug back its appendage without using its other one and relinquishing its prize. That was, until Riptide snapped off its limb with a vicious tug and twist of his jaws. Juice dripped from the torn vine limb and the Bellsprout screeched in agony, whipping the other limb holding Syd.

The vine released him and he squawked as his body was launched into the air. He tried to straighten himself out using his good wing, but smashed into a tree trunk before he could and crumpled to the forest ground. The Bellsprout lashed out at Riptide with its newly freed limb, but the Totodile unleashed a flood of water spewed from his open jaws. Just like his previous opponents, he blew away the Bellsprout and it went sailing away with final shriek, disappearing into the darkening forest.

As he attended to the flower pokémon, Lupin crashed through the underbrush to where Syd landed. Riptide followed after her when he was finished, ducking through fallen branches and underbrush. He found her kneeling on the ground, holding the little bird close to her, her ears drooping.

“Syd? Syd, please, wake up—potion, you just need some potion and a splint—”

He ventured closer, saw the awkward wing sticking up long before he saw the rest of Syd. When he did, his stomach dropped away and his heart sank.

Lupin had dropped her pack, fumbling with one hand to yank the straps open. Riptide pushed himself up onto his hind legs and laid a paw on her arm. She stopped long enough to look at him. He saw the tears in her eyes, saw that she already knew, but wasn’t quite ready to believe it.

“Lupin…”

She turned back to her pack, struggling to pull the straps open. He dug a claw into her arm, stilling her again. She looked at him again, her throat tightening

“No, no—he was just here, he was alive, he was just…knocked out, he’s _fine_ , he’s…he’s…”

“I’m sorry. He’s gone, Lupin…stop it. You can’t do anything for him.”

He turned his head away from her and got a nose full of feather dust, Riptide hissed quietly. Something hit his snout and he reeled back in shock, lifting it to look at Lupin. He stopped short when he saw the tears on her face and realizing he couldn’t say or do anything to make her stop. Not unless he could suddenly turn into a fabled god and revive one measly Pidgey from the dead.

So he said nothing. He let her cry. He let her sit there and cry, even after it had gone dark, even after the whistles started going off. He let her sit there until the tears were gone and longer still, even when he saw Mr. Dervish’s Pidgeotto flying overhead, circling back and forth until it spotted them through a gap in the tree branches. When the large bird landed, only then did he move to disturb her. She jumped, startled at his paw on her arm again.

She gave him a rather hollow stare, not really seeing him for the first few moments. The Pidgeotto landed in the tree above them, cocking her head at Riptide.

“ _Mademoiselle_ Ferus, I presume?” She looked to Riptide for confirmation, but before he could answer, Lupin did herself.

“Yeah. That’s me. Just…give me a minute, would ya?”

The Pidgeotto puffed her feathers up in surprise, looking at Lupin. “You—I did not realize—you talk to pokémon? My, my, _quelle étrange fille que vous êtes._ ” She paused then hopped on a lower branch. “Be that as it may, _Mademoiselle_ Ferus, we are still waiting for you. You…oh.”

She finally seemed to notice the prone bird in her lap and fell silent for a moment.

“ _Mademoiselle_ Ferus… _Monsieur_ Dervish is still waiting for you. It’s grown dark and the larger predators will be prowling about soon, if they are not already. We must get moving.”

Lupin didn’t respond at first. Riptide waited, turning back to look at her again. He patted her arm when she wasn’t moving. Her eyes flicked to him.

“It’s time to go,” he said gently.

She was as still as stone and just as silent as one as she stared at him. An eternity could have passed between them, or it could have only been a few seconds for all he knew. The truth of what had truly happened hours before was only just beginning to sink in. Syd was not going to come back to the center tonight. He wouldn’t snooze on the stand. He wouldn’t occupy Lupin’s other shoulder. He wouldn’t flutter about like the feathery puffball he was. He wasn’t alive anymore.

He dug his paw into her arm again. She finally nodded and stumbled to her feet and dragging her pack up with her free hand. The Pidgeotto waited, allowing them to get going before taking to the sky.

“Keep to the south, _Mademoiselle_ Ferus. You are less than a quarter of a mile away. I will tell _Monsieur_ Dervish to blow his whistle and turn on the van lights. _Suivez_ _la lumière_!”

They followed a faint path carved out through the woods, pushing through the occasional bush or low-hanging branch that came across their way. Riptide waddled beside her, exhaustion slowly worming its way into his limbs, but he didn’t dare voice it. Now wasn’t the time.

Before either of them knew it, the headlights from the rental van came shining through the night gloom and forest shadows. Everything else blurred in together from there on out. The other classmates had been driven back to Violet City. The van was empty and confining. The forest receded away and gave way to the city’s outskirts as the drive continued. Mr. Dervish was not pleased, that much was evident, but neither the werewolf nor Totodile paid him much attention. There was some reprimands in there somewhere, but it went in one ear and out the other. When they was dropped off in front of the center, he held his tongue from further admonishments when he realized none of it was getting through to the woman. Instead, he fell into an awkward silence, standing on the curb beside the woman, still holding the little Pidgey in her hands.

They barely noticed when he left, offering his condolences as he did so and then they were alone again. Riptide waited, allowing the air to clear, the time to pass, before he stood on his hind legs and patted her leg. He waited until she looked down at him.

“We can bury him when we get back. It’s only right. He doesn’t deserve to be left here. Birdbrain—Syd…he went out the way he wanted. He went out fighting. That’s what he wanted if he ever…passed.”

He tugged on her pant leg with a snip of his jaws, forcing her to step the way he moved. They had one last thing to do for the Pidgey and he wasn’t going to let her fall into a rut and let it pass by.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	18. Bonds

**Chapter Seventeen:** **  
** **Bonds**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_We'll have the days we break  
And we'll have the scars to prove it  
We'll have the bonds that we save  
But we'll have the heart not to lose it  
_ **-“ _Marchin’ On_ ” by One Republic**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The cemetery was quiet and quaint, tucked away in a small corner of Violet City, subtly out of sight, but could be found easily enough when needed. The grounds were mostly flat, with only a few rolling slopes here and there. Several flowering trees were planted, here and there, each with their own resting bench beneath their arching, shady branches. Many of the grave markers had bouquets of flowers laid upon them, small signs of love and respect for lost companions, friends, life partners. Lupin sat at one of the benches, right beneath a blooming magnolia tree, its white budding flowers slowly peeking open to greet the springtime air. Riptide sat beside her, leaning slightly on the werewolf.

Nearly the entire weekend had passed and after burying Syd, neither of them had felt much motivation to leave the confines of the center. They both knew they eventually would have to, and this was as good a place to start as any. Yet, barely five minutes in, she found she couldn’t move any further from the bench she had eventually parked herself on and continued to let the minutes crawl right past her. Riptide was, for once, just as content to allow her to wallow. He felt the same jagged puncture as she was feeling at having lost a teammate. He didn’t always get along with Syd, but he found the Pidgey charming enough to consider him a friend. All too quickly, however, it had been snatched away. Life was cruel. Death was no different. He knew and understood this, but it didn’t make the truth any less painful.

Lupin stirred beside him, the first time in what seemed an eternity. He tilted his head to better view her, and he saw her staring back at him. She placed a hand along the scutes of his backside, massaging her fingers into the muscles so it could be felt. He sighed heavily, laying his head across her lap.

“We can’t stay here all day,” she finally said, moving her fingers upward to the back of his skull, gently digging them into the spots he liked. His eyes closed on reflex, both sets of eyelids sliding shut. All too soon, the firm massage against his head stopped altogether and he grudgingly peeped them back open. He finally relented with a nod, acknowledging her.

“I just…really don’t want to get up yet.”

He sat up a little more, crooning softly and glancing at the modest bouquet she’d gotten for Syd’s grave. Her fingers kept wrapping and unwrapping around the ribbon that tied the stems together. If she kept it up, she’d unravel it completely and ruin the little bow. He lifted himself higher onto his back legs and reached out to pat her hand with his paw. She stilled her fidgeting movements and glanced back down at him.

“I can’t speak for the birdbrain directly, but I don’t think he’d want you to be this sad for this long. I don’t mean for you to just up and forget him, either, just to forgo the pain, but this…this happens to trainers. Some people lose their pokémon. You should mourn your losses, but you should also learn from the lessons those losses gave you.”

Lupin stared at him for what seemed like an eternity. Her mismatched eyes bore into his, unrelenting and guarded. When she reached forward to rub at his head again, he took it as a positive cue. She stroked along his scutes again, massaging into the harder places that reaped the best rewards. She finished all too soon once again, but this time, heralded him onto her shoulders. He hauled himself up with her help and once he was settled, he gave her shoulder a light pat.

“You really are getting bigger,” she commented offhandedly as she stood and started walking. Her hand lifted his tail as demonstration, which had gotten just a smidgeon larger. Even the larger red plating along his backside and tail, he noted, were starting to get a little bigger.

“And I told you before: trained pokémon grow quicker than feral ones do,” he replied, giving her cheek a light smack with his paw. “By the time I’m a Croconaw, I’m sure I’ll stand up to your waist.”

There it was. A smile. It was faint and brief, but it was there. It was something better than the blank slate she’s been for the past few days. The werewolf reached up to scratch at the gator’s head. He leaned into the touch, feeling relief at the slight step back into normalcy. The moment was broken, however, when she stopped walking. He turned his head to look and felt his stomach drop away unexpectedly.

The normalcy dropped away just as quickly.

Time seemed to pass at a sluggish pace. Seconds turned into minutes, and the minutes seemed to turn into hours. And yet, at the same time, it went by them too quickly. The flowers were laid upon the quaint little gravestone, a moment of silence was given, and then all of it was left behind in the same wake of silence they had arrived in. The Sprout Tower beyond rose above all other buildings in the city like a beacon.

Before either of them knew it, the pagoda was before them, imposing and silent. The little Bellsprout statues that stood on either side of the doors didn’t look as charming or goofy like they had the first time. Lupin strolled closer, pausing in the garden. Above them, a flock of Pidgey flew in perfect unison, weaving back and forth until they landed near the top of the pagoda. The two of them watched for a time.

“Do you think we should tell them?”

“Would it matter? He wasn’t in their flock anymore. They knew the risks. Whether he was still with them, or with us, they knew one day he’d die. Maybe not quite this soon, but…eventually. It happens to all living things. It’s sad, but it’s the truth. It’d be stupid to think otherwise.”

She nodded, although he suspected it was more an automatic reaction than actual agreement. He gave her cheek a nudge with his snout.

“We should start heading back. We still have some of that paperwork to finish.”

“What’s with the ‘we’ stuff? I do all the writing and reading.”

“And yet, I have the insight you don’t. Therefore, team effort.” He paused, letting out a hiss of air. “And we haven’t trained any of the pokémon you’ve caught. We need at least one of them trained up enough to stand up to this battle test.”

“I know…I know.” She sighed, turning on her heel to make her way back the way she’d come. “I know. I just…just…”

He nudged her with his snout. “And I know,” he replied, reading into her aggravation. “We have only a few hours left of daylight. Perhaps we could go to that park we passed on the way here, and train one of them.”

“I guess,” she finally consented, nodding. She dug into her coat pockets, groping for the pokéballs she had there, only to find…nothing. She swiped into her other pockets, stopping in her tracks.

“Don’t tell me: you conveniently left them back at the room, didn’t you? After three days of having them in your coat pocket, you took them out today, of all days.”

She blew a raspberry, loud and unashamed, before nodding. “Yep.”

“…this is turning out to be a _wonderful_ day.”

“Gee, thanks, Sarcasm Gator. I really needed that.”

“I aim to please. Now, let’s hurry back to the center. Might as well take this time to choose which one you’re going to use.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Time was of no factor to him. It passed both in a blur and at a lethargic, painstaking pace. He barely remembered anything in the past several days, except for the sadness. It ate away at his gut, his heart, everything. He hadn't moved from his spot behind the Wooper Café. He was determined to keep scavengers like Rattata and Raticate away. He kept telling himself it was to make sure they didn't kill and eat his master, but he already knew it was just a half-hearted lie. He just didn't want to admit it to himself yet.

The thought of the elderly man hurt. He was gone. One minute, he had been there, talking to Bullet, and then the next…gone. He'd petered out, trailed off, and what little life had been left in his eyes died. The Growlithe tried to wake him up, but to no avail. There was no fanfare. There was no sudden stop of the world at his master's passing. Everyone else in Violet City just kept on going about their business. The days passed. His hunger grew, but it didn't motivate him enough to get up and find something to eat. So he laid there in the alleyway beside his master.

It wasn't until the scuffle of footsteps echoing closer that had gotten him out of his sleepy stupor. He saw boots first. He bolted upright, trying to shove the tiredness aside in a hurry as he sluggishly pieced together who was intruding. He growled halfheartedly, only to be met by soft coos and cajoling from the two humans heading toward him, murmuring words of reassurance and ease. They tried making themselves small and slow—slower than usual, that is—but he remained defensive and growled at them, unrelenting. Too close, they were _too_ close. He barked at them to go away, but they weren't scared. One of them had a noose for catching stray pokémon and animals alike in Violet City. The other was a police officer. He had another Growlithe with him, but this one was bigger, cleaner, stronger. Bullet almost shrunk back at the sight of the other pokémon. But he couldn't. He had a job to do. He wouldn't let his fear get in the way.

The Growlithe stepped forward, looking both intimidating and placating all at once. The two humans kept their distance, allowing their Growlithe to step forward closer.

"Hey there, little guy. Easy there, I'm not here to hurt ya, I promise."

Bullet growled back, showing his teeth. The bigger puppy pokémon was unperturbed by the display.

"Look, little guy…you can't stay here. The humans of this city are getting tired of you stealing from them. The last few complaints were the last straw. We're here to bring you in."

"I'm not a feral, I have a trainer!"

"Your trainer's dead," the other stated matter-of-factly. He nodded toward the pitiful shelter that had been home to Bullet and his master for as long as he could remember. Bullet gnashed his teeth, snarling when the other Growlithe made to come closer. He paused, then sat back down again, staring down at him like a disappointed parent. "I'm sorry. But you can't stay on the streets. You're going to eventually hurt someone or worse, they're going to end up hurting you. We have a nice program back near our district. We'll clean you up, get you a few good hot meals, and maybe even a nice trainer will pick you up. You look like you could use that."

Bullet almost fell for it. Almost. It sounded nice. It was _tempting_. The Growlithe had distracted him long enough for the two humans to sneak closer. Before he realized what was happening, the noose was snuggly wrapped around his neck. He snarled, feeling a weight on his back push him into the ground. His legs collapsed beneath him and air gushed out of his lungs from the force. He gazed upward at the other Growlithe, who stared impassively at him. Briefly, it broke, a trickle of pity lining his eyes before it was gone again when he gained praise from his trainer.

"Please, don't let them take me away—my master, he's right there, please—!"

The other Growlithe's eyes softened again with regret.

"Your master died. It smells like he's been dead for a few days. Can't you smell it?"

He could. He just didn't want to admit. It hurt too much.

A hand grappled for his muzzle. He snapped his teeth at the prodding fingers. He tasted blood and heard a curse above him. Bullet snarled and breathed deep, felt the fire in his belly flare up inside. The other Growlithe's eyes widened and he barked out a warning to his humans, but it was too late. Fire gushed from Bullet's mouth, spraying the alleyway and engulfing the other Growlithe. The weight on top of him fled in a hurry. He used the distraction to barrel through. He knocked over the bigger Growlithe and sped away. He heard them curse and shout and scream after him, but he was fast and before he knew it, he'd lost them. The noose around his neck clattered along beside him, causing such a ruckus, he almost thought it was chasing him at first. It spurred him to dump more energy into his pace, to pick up speed, to outrun the noisy pursuer. It beat against his flank, bruising them to the point of painful, but he didn't dare slow down, not for a long time.

His drive, however, quickly waned and he found his adrenaline rush depleted faster than he could remember. He was cold. He was hungry. The noose around his neck hurt, the stick it was attached to clattering along beside him. His leg was throbbing from where the stick had struck him repeatedly during his run. He barely had any fire left in him. He had used it all up to scare off the men and that traitorous Growlithe of theirs who had tried to take him away from his master. But he had no master, a tiny voice reminded him. He was with no home, no master, nothing. He was just another homeless stray.

 _I might as well be a feral,_ he thought morosely. There were packs of his kind roaming the forests beyond Violet City, weren't there? Maybe he could find one and join them. There was nothing left in this city for him. He was free, technically. The pokéball his master had was no longer valid. Or at least, he thought it wasn't. He wasn't sure how it all worked. Surely those two humans would destroy it now. Or maybe they'd steal it and try to take him away that way. The thought made him whine. He shouldn't have left it there, if that were the case.

Bullet whined again, stopping in his tracks to find himself in a vaguely familiar street. He sniffed the air and then looked up to the sky, searching for that tall pagoda. When in doubt, the Sprout Tower was a good landmark to reference off of. He was far from the Wooper Café, that was for sure, but they could be tracking him. If he were that other Growlithe, he'd just follow the scent marks of whoever it was he was tracking. It was common sense to follow your nose, after all.

Despite his exhaustion, he pushed himself into a fast trot, unsure of where to go. The forest, perhaps? Or back to where his master was still lying?

He came to a sudden halt, both at the despair and indecision romping about through his head, and from the aroma that assaulted his nose. It was that same, musky canine scent wrapped in a human-likeness, but not quite. It was girl and canine and reptile and feather dust mingling all at once, familiar and distant. It nagged at him, nibbling away at his conscious. Where had he taken a whiff of this scent before? It was recent, but there were plenty of scents like it in the city. So many trainers, and just as many pokémon. He pushed and prodded at the mystery scent mark, sniffing actively in the air, at the ground, until it clicked.

The woman with the Totodile and Pidgey.

His ears splayed against his head. Of all the scents he had to pick up on…

But then he perked. She wasn't _so_ bad. She fed him and his master. Even if she had chased him first and sicced her pokémon on him, she had stopped when she realized _why_ he stole her pastry. He whimpered. She wouldn't help him again, would she? She was kind of nice. She was the first person in a long while to actually look twice his way. The wind picked up, teasing him with all types of scents, but he followed after the woman's scent, tugged along by it, the maybes and what ifs clinging to his fur like water. Maybe she could talk to the humans. Maybe she could help his master.

Maybe, maybe, maybe.

What if, what if, what if.

Every idea he had was nonsensical, wild, and unrealistic in some cases. But he clung to them anyway, because they distracted him from the truth. He caught wind of the two humans and that big Growlithe long before he saw them and diverted his path. He knew where he was headed already, he didn't need to follow the woman's scent any longer. She was staying at the center. Maybe he could find her there.

The trek back across the city left his paws singing with pain, his muscles aching, and his body feeling like lead weights. He passed by trainers on the street, no longer concerned with hiding from sight. He was too tired to duck and dodge. The sun was beginning to hide behind the taller buildings, leaving him to wander in the cool shade. It made him shiver, reminding him that his fire was nearly depleted. He whined, his head hanging low. It would take forever to heal up on his own, to let his fire replenish itself once more. Maybe he could get that girl to take this damnable thing off from around his neck, too.

The glow from streetlights began to illuminate the streets, mixed with the soft colours of the sky. It almost looked good enough to eat, and that thought made his stomach rumble and twist and he felt as though a pack of Rattata were gnawing away at him from the inside out.

The familiar sight and scent of Violet City's Pokémon Center came looming into sight when he made a turn around the final block. It was a beacon of hope to him, the light at the end of a long, winding tunnel and he was nearing a tiring, painful journey. He limped forward, dragging the noose along with him, the pole bumping against him to a rhythm: _hurry, hurry, hurry. Rush, rush, rush._

He paused just outside the beam of lights casting across the street and sidewalk, however, hovering just inside the shadows. What if she wasn't there? What if she'd left the city?

He hadn't thought of that. The one person he hoped to find, and she might not be here. She could have moved on. She was just another traveling trainer, after all. They were nomads; they never stayed in one place for very long. He sniffed at the ground.

But…maybe he was jumping to conclusions. Her scent mark was still fresh. It smelled…sad. But fresh. He whined, ears slowly pressing to the top of his head as he slunk forward, trying to pick up on her trail, the freshest one. His ears flicked at the noise of a human crowing and he looked up to see a small child pointing excitedly at him as he and a bigger one, female and perhaps his mother, exited the center. One of those tubby water-types—a Marill, if he remembered correctly—held in his skinny arms.

"Mom, look, look! It's one of those police Growlithes!"

The woman crinkled her nose, patting the boy on the back. "Right, honey, that's right. Although, I don't think this one works in the department. It looks…dirty."

He snorted and barked back, "You try living on the streets and staying clean!"

The woman flinched, but the boy looked as intrigued. The Marill looked annoyed, glaring at him with its beady black eyes. The woman eyed the pole still dangling around Bullet's neck, her hand creeping up on her boy's shoulder and steering him away.

"Come on, we got Puff all healed up. Let's go home. _Now_."

"But mom, I wanna pet him—"

"You're not petting that filthy pokémon. Now let's go."

He growled and the Marill growled right back, going so far as to hop on the boy's shoulder to peer at the Growlithe.

"Oi! Fluffy! Stop pickin' on people!"

The new voice startled him and he jumped, glancing over his shoulder. All the tension in his body went slack. His eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. He didn't know whether to be scared or relieved. The woman was there. Her Totodile was curled around her shoulders like a scaly blue-and-red scarf. The Pidgey was missing, but at her feet was a Rattata. It watched him curiously, head cocked to the side, its small pink nose wiggling in the air as it sniffed.

The Totodile bristled, stirring on the woman's shoulder. She was dressed almost the same as before: long coat, dark clothes, and a hat over her head. She regarded him with those mismatched eyes, but it wasn't with the childish naiveté that boy had shown, or the suspicion and distaste his mother had that most others showed him. He knew he wasn't a very good pokémon sometimes. But he wasn't _all_ bad. Some people saw it, like this woman.

She looked him over, from the noose and its pole, to his dirtied and haggard appearance, and last his face. He whined at her, ready to fall over and lay right there. He was too tired to move.

"So, you finally got caught. Serves you right. Shame there isn't someone attached to that pole of yours." The Totodile hissed. The woman glanced at the blue gator from the corner of her eye and gave him a mild scowl, flicking him upside the head.

"Be nice." She chided. _That_ got Bullet's attention. She turned back to him and shuffled forward with a sigh, reaching for the pole. He stumbled away, but she caught it and made a 'calm down' motion with her hand. "Easy, there. I'm not gonna drag you down to the pound."

She reached slowly, gently loosening the noose from his neck until it slid free and it clattered to the ground, useless. He stared at it for a moment, then back at the woman.

"Thank you," he breathed, enjoying the freedom his neck had now that it was gone. "It was really starting to hurt."

"Shame it didn't hurt some more, thief," the Totodile snorted. Another light flick to the head shut him up. The woman smiled at him, letting him sniff her hand. He licked it in gratitude.

"You're welcome," she replied back. He stopped mid-lick and stared at her with wide eyes. The Rattata ventured closer, sniffing his fur before reeling back and hiding behind the woman.

"I-I—y-you can understand me?!"

She tilted her head a little at him. "Sure. From what I've seen, not many people can understand pokémon. But apparently, I'm one of those few who can."

He continued to stare with that slack-jawed expression. His shock allowed her a few quiet moments to study him more thoroughly and she took advantage of it to pat him on the head.

"Where's your master? The old man," she asked. Her smile dropped, however, when he hung his head and didn't answer. He didn't need to. The silence dragged on and she seemed to catch on. Her fingers scrubbed through his tangled fur. He winced when they caught on a particularly nasty knot. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I…"

Her hand stopped moving, and pulled away briefly. He hadn't realized he'd closed his eyes and leaned into the touch until he opened them and pulled back himself, whining for more. An arm scooped up around his middle, picking him up. He yowled in surprise, but the grip didn't falter. The Rattata that had largely remained quiet and out of sight, was trotting ahead on quick little paws, with the woman carrying him into the center.

"Stop struggling. You're getting a bath—shut it, Riptide, no, we're helping him this time—and you're also getting a good healing up too. You look terrible."

"Wait—hey, wait a minute, you can't do—stop it, you can't _do_ this!" He struggled more. This wasn't he had in mind when he thought of help from this woman. And now, he was regretting thinking about it in the first place. She veered across the front lobby toward a small, tucked away corner where a squashed comfy seat and small side table sat. Carefully, she set him on the table, and she plopped into the chair. The Totodile atop her shoulders—Riptide, she had called him—hissed and clung to her as she settled. The Rattata scrambled up into her lap. She patted his head, murmuring words of encouragement before returning him to his pokéball.

Bullet stared, waiting tensely.

"Your trainer's gone…Bullet, was it? That's what he called you, yeah?"

He wavered, uncertain, then nodded to her.

"I'm sorry, Bullet. But…you're about as well off as a wild pokémon. And from the looks of things, someone already tried to take you in with that noose."

"They tried, but I got away…" he murmured in agreement, casting his gaze to his front paws. Her hand was atop his head again, gently rubbing at his ears.

"If I let you go, you're going to keep having people on your tail. If that's what you want, I'll walk you out the front door and leave you alone. But…I have a proposition."

He looked up at her, and her hand fell back down to her lap. Riptide let out a guttural noise of displeasure.

"Oh, please don't. Not this one. Anyone but this one."

She ignored the Totodile and continued addressing him.

"If you'd like, you can come with me and Riptide here. You'd be safe from anyone trying to take you away again, and…you'd get a new start."

He stared at her, somewhat startled by it. It was more than he had imagined. It felt like more than he deserved. She waited, allowing the offer to hang in the air.

"You don't have to say yes tonight, but…I think a warm place to sleep and a clean coat of fur would be a welcome start, yes?" She vaguely motioned to the center and he glanced over his shoulder, seeing the sparse assortment of trainers and their pokémon that were loitering the lobby. Some were sitting at chairs and tables not unlike the one the woman sat in. His gaze slid back to the waiting woman and her narrow-eyed Totodile.

He had few choices to consider. Stay in the city and risk being taken in by those people from earlier and more like them; return to the wilds to try and find one of his own kind to live with; or perhaps go with this woman to places new and unknown. He was sure there were others, but at the moment, none of them were as appealing as the top three rolling around in his head. He looked back up at her, his ears perking up slightly and he scooted closer to the edge of the table.

"I'll go with you, I…I don't have…anywhere else to go. My master, he…"

"He was very old. And he…didn't seem quite there when I saw him last."

"He forgot stuff all the time…it's how we lost our home. It…it started small at first, but it…"

"Grew into more. That sounds like Alzheimer's. It happens to elderly people."

"Oh…I-I didn't…couldn't he have gone to the human healing center? To get cured? I should have done that, right, taken him there?"

"It's…not something that can be cured. Not permanently, anyway. But he looked like he'd lived a long life. I'm sorry the last small part of it was in the streets."

Bullet pressed himself to the table, hiding his snout under his paws. He didn't want to think about it anymore. It hurt too much to think that he'd just ran away. He should have stood his ground and stayed with his master, but then what? Shame was rising up inside him, making his stomach turn sour.

He'd have been back to this three-way decision. His ears were being rubbed again. He peeked up at the woman. She was still smiling at him. Riptide, not so much. But the Growlithe didn't care much for that grim gator. He kept his gaze on the woman.

"If you're sure about sticking around, then…welcome to the team, Bullet. Glad to have you here."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	19. Luck

**Chapter Eighteen:** **  
** **Luck**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Here's the thing about luck...you don't know if it's good or bad until you have some perspective._  
― **Alice Hoffman** **, “** ** _Local Girls_** ** _”_**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Bullet, use flame wheel!”

Fire gushed forward, cycling over and engulfing the Growlithe. He spurred forward, hurtling himself toward his opponent. He smashed into the Caterpie, sending it flying with a terrified squeal into the air. A beam of red light shot toward the airborne bug-type, encased it and suddenly, it was gone, recalled into its pokéball.

Lupin slowed her breathing, her eyes locked on her opponent from across the battlefield. He was about her age, maybe slightly older. He grimaced as he tucked away his last pokéball and trudged off to the sidelines. She relaxed. Bullet pivoted on his paws, tail wagging excitedly. His ears perked up high, although one was starting to flop over slightly. His blue eyes shined brightly.

“Did I do good, did I, did I?”

She grinned at him, dropping to a knee, motioning him to come forward. He did so with great gusto, nearly bowling her over as he pounced, licking her face. She chuckled.

“You did great! That was really good, Bullet. You are _definitely_ getting a treat for your hard work today.”

Riptide grumbled beside her, although he didn’t too unpleased with the results. She glanced briefly at Mr. Dervish, waiting expectantly. He was scribbling away on a clipboard. Finally he looked up to address her and she stood. Bullet rushed to sit beside her, his tail still wagging a little.

“Very good with matching type advantage, _Mademoiselle_ Ferus. Although, your strategy is something of…eh, what’s the word…” He paused, rubbing at his chin thoughtfully. “It could use work. You tend to rely on brute strength rather than utilizing advantages a battlefield could potentially provide. Granted, we don’t have a pond or water-based field we could use for your Totodile, but I digress. Sharpen up that much of your skills, and you’ll make an even better battler.” He smiled. “But, in spite of that…you did win the mock tournament. Congratulations!”

She felt a hesitant smile pulling at her lips as she nodded to him, before glancing at Riptide. He was wearing his signature crooked croc smile, but the glint in his eyes told her he was rather proud at the moment. Bullet gave a happy yelp beside her, wiggling on the spot. She stooped over to scoop up Riptide and he clambered to his usual spot around her shoulders. Bullet leaned on her leg as she straightened before she clicked her tongue, motioning him to follow her. He trotted alongside her, a healthy bounce to his step.

Mr. Dervish strolled over to meet her halfway, pulling her graded paperwork from the clipboard and handing it to her. There were a few points shaved off here and there, but overall, her grade was rather good. She thanked Mr. Dervish and he clapped her shoulder. “Go, join the others. I have some word to pass and then I will release you for the day. Come, come! _Dépêchez-vous_ _maintenant_!”

“What’s it say?” Riptide murmured in her ear as she moved toward the rest of the class. He was squinting at the page, head cocked to the side.

“We got a passing grade.”

“And those red marks took off points, yes?”

“Mm-hmm.”

The class gathered and waited as Mr. Dervish finished giving her last opponent his test sheet. Then he turned to face the rest of them, beaming. “ _Très bien,_ _vous avez tous_ _fait_ _si bien_! Improvement is not just for the young! You have all done your best in this class, and as a result, I can say with great pleasure, you’ve all passed!” He paused for effect, then motioned back to the building. “We’ll hold a small graduation ceremony here tomorrow at noon. Practice will start at ten, we’ll do some dry runs, and then afterwards, you can go to the ID office down at the Pokémon Center.”

With that said, they were dismissed. Everyone either scattered to the winds or stayed behind for further discussions and questions for Mr. Dervish. Lupin was on her way to leave with most of the others, but stopped when she noticed an onlooker approaching Mr. Dervish. He was a slim looking young man, his hair dark but the sun played on it, giving it an almost bluish sheen to it. He sported a serious expression, and had an air of importance about him, carrying himself with purpose and intent. Mr. Dervish noticed him at the last moment and laughed heartily, clapping the young man on the shoulder when he was an arm’s length away.

Lupin paused to watch, as did several others.

“Ah, _Monsieur_ Falkner, what a pleasant surprise! _Ce est_ _toujours un plaisir_ _de vous avoir ici_!”

The young man offered a faint smile. One of the women close by Lupin gasped suddenly. Riptide shifted on her shoulder to stare at the woman.

“That’s Falkner, the Violet City Gym Leader!” A few others jumped in, murmuring among themselves. Their interest piqued, some of them began moving back toward Mr. Dervish and the new arrival, muted excitement buzzing in the air.

“Go over there, don’t just stand here gawking,” Riptide chided with a clack of his jaws. Bullet gave an eager whine, his tail thumping on the ground.

“Why? We’re not challenging the gym.”

If he was able to pinch the bridge of his snout, he would have done so then and there. Instead, the Totodile gave a long-suffering sigh.

“Gym leaders have an obligation to offer instructional advice to new trainers.” He paused, tilting his head enough so they were eye-to-eye. “Besides, what else do you plan on doing, besides adventuring into the world to find out who you are? You’re certainly not planning on becoming a breeder or daycare provider of some sort. And neither are you an aspiring ace trainer or bug-catcher, and I certainly don’t see you hopping on the ship to hail the call of the sea and become a sailor.”

He stared at her pointedly, and she blanched, realizing he was right. And yet, she couldn’t find it in her to move forward. Riptide sighed again, although this time with more patience behind it.

“It wouldn’t hurt to get some advice on where you might find the best information for your…situation. Perhaps he knew you, or someone from your pictures or that book of yours.”

She considered his words, indecision rippling through her for several moments. He had a point, she couldn’t deny that. She made an aggravated noise at the back of her throat.

“I hate it when you’re actually right,” she said as she began moving toward the small crowd. This elicited Riptide to rattle-laugh away in her ear.

“But you’re glad I am,” he surmised. She didn’t deign him with an answer, which made him laugh again. Bullet trotted along her, his claws clicking on the concrete. So far, he seemed to be adjusting well between herself and Riptide, although she caught him brooding on occasion when he thought no one was looking. She knew it’d be a while before his spirits were truly lifted. She’d have to work on that.

Lupin circled around the group until she found a free space close to Mr. Dervish and Falkner, who was fielding questions already to the curious bystanders around him. Most were trivial inquiries—most were about his gym, advice on flying-type pokémon, and strategies he employs in battles versus what Mr. Dervish had taught, and so on. Before long, the others started trickling away, satiated with the encounter for the time being. Mr. Dervish began speaking with Falkner when the other men and women began turning away, seemingly intent on pressing his own agenda and conversation with the young man. He stopped mid-sentence, however, when he noticed Lupin still lingering nearby, watching the both of them keenly. Riptide dug his claws into her shoulder, a silent prompt to get on with it. Bullet wiggled beside her with pent up energy still begging to find an outlet to be released.

“ _Mademoiselle_ Ferus?”

“I had a few questions for Falkner, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, but of course not! What was it you needed?”

Lupin hesitated, then turned her gaze to the taller young man. He was watching her with a fierce gaze, like a predator waiting for her to make the first move.

She was unimpressed.

“Actually, it’s a bit…private, if you don’t mind, Mr. Dervish.”

The portly man chuckled, nodding several times. “Of course, of course, that is no problem. Falkner, when you are finished, come by my office, we have much to catch up on! _Allons-y_!”

With that said, Mr. Dervish left with a flourish and bounce in his step, a grace in his movements despite his size. Falkner watched the man leave, before turning his dark eyes onto Lupin again. He didn’t smile at her.

“If you’re looking for a date, I’ve already turned down several proposals this week alone. I’m not interested.”

“Gee, you’re really full of yourself, aren’t you? Do you believe every woman who talks to you wants to get in your pants?” She snapped off, not missing a beat. He looked taken aback for a brief second. Then his lips twitched slightly.

“I assume,” he agreed. “A gym leader isn’t necessarily a glamorous position, but it’s government funded and the pay itself isn’t half-bad. Lots of diggers trying to get attached to those benefits.”

He glanced upward, squinting as he peered at the sky. Then he returned his attention to Lupin.

“So, if you’re not asking for a date, is it about my gym hours? They’re posted at the front door.”

“No, that’s not it either.” She paused, easing her wallet from her back pocket and fished out the photos in them. “I know this is farfetched, but you might have something I can work with, even if it’s vague or a long shot.”

She hesitated, stopping herself short. Riptide squeezed his claws into her shoulder again, as though in reassurance. Bullet pressed against her leg.

“I…had an accident a couple months back and I was diagnosed with amnesia. These pictures were in my wallet, and I don’t know who they are, I didn’t exactly label them on the back.” She presented the small stack to the taller man. “And since you’re a gym leader, you probably get a lot of traffic through your gym. Maybe you’ve seen some of these people, or…or met them at some point.”

It was thin hope, but it was hope to hold onto.

Falkner took the pictures and scanned them quickly, his face a blank, unreadable slate. Then he handed them back, shaking his head.

“No, sorry. I haven’t seen any of these people. And I’m sorry to say, but I probably wouldn’t remember that well even if they had. I get many challengers and the faces and pokémon teams tend to blur together after a while.”

And there went her bubble of hope. She sighed, taking them all back and putting them back where they belonged.

“Thought I’d try anyway. Sorry to waste your time.”

She turned to leave, feeling a little dejected. She stopped when Falkner called back to her, and she glanced at him.

“You should stop by the gym before you leave Violet City,” he said casually, looking a mite more relaxed than moments before. “You have a rather good strategy for battling, never mind what Dervish says. It’d be interesting to place a match against you.”

“I’m not interested in gym battles,” she replied.

“Oh? And what are you interested in? Breeding? Construction? Daycare?” He paused. “You’re not planning on just traveling about, asking people ‘do you know me’, are you? Adventurous, to be sure, but a bit pointless and lacking.”

She shifted from foot to the other, uncomfortable with his prodding. “I’m interested in getting my head back together and my memory back.”

He considered her for a moment, then smiled. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll extend my resources and see if I can’t find something about those people you’re looking for. Maybe someone from the other gyms can give you something. But, you need to do something for me.”

“This sounds like the lead up to a sex thing now,” she wrinkled her nose in distaste. He scowled at her.

“If you defeat all the sages and their Elder, then come see me.”

“And if I don’t?”

He shrugged. “Then I suppose the information I might unearth isn’t that important to you.”

“Are you… _blackmailing_ me?” She bristled at the thought. He shrugged again, turning on his heel slightly to face the Pokémon Academy.

“No, nothing of the sort. I prefer the term ‘motivation’.” Falkner waved over his shoulder as he walked away. “See you in a few days!”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“He’s trying to bait you, you know.”

“I gathered as much, thank you for the insight.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was going to be that much of an arrogant ass.” Riptide remarked dismally, slumping on her shoulder. “I thought gym leaders were supposed to _help_ trainers, not coerce them into battling…”

“Wait, why was he goading you?” Bullet queried as he padded alongside Lupin. They entered the Wooper Café and got in line behind a man with an Oddish dancing around his feet. The Growlithe paused to watch, his head moving back and forth in time with the Oddish. When it came closer, he lifted his rump in the air, tail wagging furiously. They began to dance and weave around together playfully. Riptide watched for a moment, then returned his attention to Lupin.

“Short attention span,” he muttered. Lupin sighed.

“He’s goading me because he wants more publicity, I’m guessing. The best trainer out of the graduating class against the gym leader would make for an interesting battle in his head. I think he also sees it as an opportunity to showcase how much better he is.”

“Maybe, but perhaps not,” he said neutrally, considering. “I doubt he’s got _that_ much of an ego. But it looks like he’s somewhat concerned with your cause, if my impression is anything good to go by.”

“He didn’t take any of the pictures for reference, though. And I didn’t get to tell him any names to ask around for. How is _that_ supposed to be helpful?”

He conceded her point. It did seem a little odd. They got to the front counter and Lupin bought the usual round of snacks for herself and her two pokémon, as well as a large coffee with extra shots of espresso in it. Minutes later, they were trotting back out and toward the center.

“Do you think we should go back to his gym and have him take copies of the photos? If he’s supposedly going to help us, the least he could do is take the reference with him to show his ‘contacts’.”

“His contacts might be other gym leaders. There’s only eight of them here in Johto, but perhaps the network is more extensive…” Riptide murmured quietly, pausing to think. “Perhaps you could have shown your pictures to the professor as well.”

“He’d forget about them. You know that better than me. He’d forget for weeks, months. His head’s full of pokémon data, not playing detective and looking for people.”

Again, he had to concede to her point, as much as he didn’t want to. She was right. The professor didn’t have time to play detective and rouse up contacts to drop what they were doing and look for a few faces out of, what? Millions? Billions? It could be done, he had no doubt, but how long would it take?

He was having some doubts now about her endeavor to find them herself. The world suddenly seemed so large and daunting. For all they knew, these people could be elsewhere, like Kanto or Hoenn, maybe even as far as Orre, Sinnoh, Kalos, Fiore or any other region he may not have even heard of. Not to mention, there were so many unexplored, untamed regions. There were miles upon miles of untainted wilderness, pure and wild, where little to no humans have ever stepped foot into. Her journey seemed like a fool’s errand now, but he couldn’t find it in him to voice it aloud. He didn’t have the strength to shoot down her expedition right then and there. It seemed too cruel a thing to do.

_But how long can she keep this up? We’re only at the beginning and it already seems hopeless…_

“Hey, what’s eating you?” Bullet called from the ground, looking up at him with those curious, naïve blue eyes. He looked better than he had at the beginning of the week. His coat was cleaned and shiny, although there were some patches here and there suggesting where he had hot spots. Treating them was a cinch, however, after Nurse Joy had diagnosed what they were.

“I’m thinking,” he finally deigned to answer the Growlithe. He cocked his head, one ear flopping over as he did.

“About?”

They turned the block, heading toward the Pokémon Center. “About our next move.”

“Isn’t that her job?”

“We can help, you know. She might form a plan and then conveniently forget it at a pivotal moment. Alas, the fate of our poor trainer and her amnesiac condition.”

“Har, har. Thank you _so_ much, you useless reptile. I always need a daily reminder of how broken my head is.” Lupin growled out as they passed the threshold into the center. It was packed with more trainers and pokémon than she normally saw. Some she recognized as the more common pokémon—Pidgey, Spearow, Rattata, Sentret, and the like—although she did notice a Nidoking hanging around in the back, shooting the occasional glare at a four-armed, muscle-bound pokémon that stood at least a good foot-and-a-half taller than her.  She whipped out her Pokédex, and highlighted a few that she hadn’t seen before and the data came streaming through, listing them in.

Bullet whined, taken aback. She paused in her scanning and glanced at him. A look of horror was painted across his face and she hesitated, quietly chastising herself. She finally put away the device and crouched, patting his head. “Hey…easy there, boy. It’s okay. Don’t worry. I’m sorry. We didn’t mean anything by it. Don’t you worry, I’m not going to forget anything about you or Riptide or anything we’ve done together. _Especially_ you two. Okay?”

“Promise?”

“I promise. Amnesia isn’t like Alzheimer’s. Amnesia can usually be overcome. And…I’m hoping that’ll happen soon. I dunno when, but maybe if I find the people I need to, they can help.”

He looked somewhat appeased and he licked her hand. She scooped him up and carried him the rest of the way to the room. He was smart, but it was obvious he still had the mentality of a very young pup sometimes. His elderly trainer couldn’t give him the proper training he needed, the experience he should have had, but she didn’t fault the old man for Bullet’s shortcomings. She just couldn’t find it in her to do so.

  **OoOoOoOoOoO**

The practice and ceremony went without a hitch, and afterwards, everyone headed off as a group to the ID office back at the Pokémon Center. The process of waiting and filling out extra paperwork was a pain, but subsequently, it all went through without any more delays. An hour after graduation, Lupin was peering down at her new, freshly made ID. The photographer had wanted her to take off her hat, but she had somehow managed to wheedle her way into keeping it on. She mostly had Riptide and Bullet’s hissing and growling to thank for a majority of that.

Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the Sprout Tower, the imposing pagoda a beacon that drew many to it, like moths to the flame. There were more people loitering about the beautiful garden, soaking up the sun or enjoying the scenery. It was another nice day, after all, and the amount of bodies that were coming and going were more than the previous times Lupin had come to visit the Sprout Tower.

“I guess we should head inside and get this stuff over with as quickly as possible,” she commented idly.

“You sure you want to go through with this?” Riptide replied, clacking his jaws a few times. “If you start this, this means you might have to fight Falkner. And if that happens, you end up getting a badge. That wasn’t exactly what you were aiming for when you started this journey.”

Not that he really minded. If it meant fighting, he was all for it. But Lupin was his trainer now. She called the shots, with or without his approval. He deferred to her, whether his advice was taken or not. She didn’t answer right away. She didn’t move either. Instead, she remained where she was, faltering now that he’d brought that up. The gears were turning in her head, he could see that, and from the glance down at Bullet, he could see it as well. He could smell the anxiety wafting off of her, being in such close proximity of the woman. He could see the second-guessing flashing across the eye that was visible to him, her brow drawing together in a pinched-thoughtful look.

Finally, after what seemed an eternity had passed them by, she nodded. Determination built, first a small ember until it grew and blazed like wildfire. She reached up and tugged her hat down a little, making sure her ears were secure and hidden.

“We’ve come too far to get stopped by some punk gym leader with a big ego. He wants me to fight these people in the tower, then fine. We’ll give it all we got and then some.”

He laughed at that, already feeling his blood boiling at the prospect.

“ _Finally_. I thought I’d never hear you say those words. I was beginning to believe I’d made the wrong choice traveling with you.”

“Ye of little faith.”

“Consider my faith restored.”

“So we’re going? We’re fighting?” Bullet panted out, his body trembling with excitement. Lupin motioned toward the entrance of the Sprout Tower.

“Onward ho,” she grinned with a nod of approval. He gave a howl of delight and bounded off ahead of them. Lupin followed after him at a more leisurely pace, but underneath the calm, she was actually looking forward to the battles ahead as well. If it meant getting her one step closer to the information she wanted, then so be it.

_Let the fights commence._

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It was quickly noted and established that the sages who trained in the Sprout Tower had a preference to the flower pokémon, Bellsprout. Lupin still had mixed feelings about the little reedy things, having lost Syd to one of their kind. It was an open wound that was still sensitive and hadn’t quite scabbed over completely. Being reminded of the event opened it a little further, but she didn’t dare let it show. Instead, she torched them all down. These weren’t the ones who had harmed her little bird, but it felt somewhat satisfying to take them all down, in a grim sort of fashion.

Each victory led her closer to the highest point in the pagoda. Inside, as she twirled the nexus of the tower’s stairwells to the top floor, the center beam swayed in time with every battle. It was nauseating at first, worrisome after a time, then nothing more than a norm.

The center beam was created to do as such, and as legend had it, it was created from the largest living Bellsprout. Of course, that had to be impossible, and it was a fair point which she and Riptide agreed upon. When Lupin asked one of the sages about it, they laughed politely at her inquiry and motioned to the center beam.

“It sways like that to keep the tower from falling. And battles make it sway as well, not just the seismic activity.”

“Like earthquake prevention?”

“Something like that. I’m sure you’ve heard of the legend about the mighty Bellsprout who became the center point of our pagoda, yes?”

“Somewhat. It sounds like a tall tale, but it makes for a good story.”

He only smiled at her before permitting her to continue forward, not uttering another peep about it. Instead, he watched her go and when she was gone, tended to his Bellsprout’s wounds.

When Lupin reached the highest point in the pagoda, the center beam was swaying again, back and forth like a metronome, almost in a hypnotizing fashion. Further behind it, she could hear the sounds of a battle raging on. A few more sages stood in her way, and one of them had a Hoothoot on his team, alongside the signature Bellsprout that they all possessed. He was tough, but switching out Bullet with Riptide to do battle with the Hoothoot proved a good strategy. He quickly took down the puffball when it fluttered too close to him. He snapped it right out of the air, using his bite attack without mercy until the sage recalled him.

He motioned wordlessly for her to continue on ahead. He was her last opponent and as she rounded the corner of the shifting beam, she stopped herself short. Bullet ran into the back of her calf, only half-paying attention to where he was going and fell back on his rump.

“Hey! You’re supposed to be moving forward, not stopping! This isn’t a crosswalk, ya know,” he grumbled, before taking stock of his trainer’s frozen expression. He followed her gaze, confused. There were two people near the back, one an elderly man and the other a young redheaded young man. “Lupin?”

“Uh…yeah, sorry, Bullet.”

“It’s him again.”

“I can see that,” Lupin replied.

“Who’s ‘him’?”

“Some punk with a bad attitude we met on the road a few weeks back,” Riptide replied with a low hiss. “He stole that Chikorita by his side from Professor Elm. We should report him to the authorities before he gets away.”

Suddenly, as though being watched, the redhead turned his gaze on them. That ridiculously smarmy smirk appeared on his face, and he strolled away from the white-haired man before him. He stopped short of Lupin.

“So, you’ve made it this far since we last met,” he looked her over, sneering. He jerked his head, motioning to the old man behind him. “He claims to be the ‘Elder’, but he’s weak. It stands to reason. I’d never lose to fools who babble on about being nice to pokémon. I only care about strong pokémon that can win. I really couldn’t care less about weak pokémon.”

His gaze slid from Riptide to Bullet as he spoke. Bullet whined and hid behind Lupin. Riptide hissed low in his throat, narrowing his eyes at Shirubā. Chikorita looked worriedly on between her trainer and Lupin. Riptide could see she was dreading another fight. She looked ready to collapse and was trying to put up a strong front. The redhead looked her over one last time, then turned on his heel toward the exit.

“I don’t know how you managed to slip through the cracks, but you’re going to end up like that old man the next time we meet. I’ll beat you and crush you down so hard into the ground, you’ll _never_ want to get up again. C’mon, Chikorita. Let’s go. It’s starting to stink of loser around here.”

Lupin bristled and Bullet growled menacingly at Shirubā, baring his fangs. “Say that again to my face, you greasy-haired bastard! Come back here!”

He started after Shirubā, but Lupin gave a sharp bark, ordering him back over. He hesitated, looking torn, before grudgingly trotting back over to Lupin’s side.

“Don’t get worked up over him. He’s a young kid. A punk-ass kid, but a kid nonetheless. He thinks he’s invincible.”

“A punk-ass kid who _stole_ a pokémon from the professor,” Riptide reminded her. She nodded at the grim reminder. “We’ll report we saw him in town when we’re done here.”

The elderly man was tending to his pokémon as Lupin approached. He was kneeling on _tatami_ mat, the design simple and practical. His robes nearly covered the entire thing from sight, and hiding his lower body in its many folds of dark clothe. He finished healing his team as she approached and he gave her a sage nod in her direction before standing, giving her a deep bow. She hesitated, then returned the gesture, feeling a little awkward, as well as mindful of the Totodile still resting on her shoulders. She straightened only he had, and he nodded, as though in approval of her manners.

“Good afternoon, young lady. So good of you to come here! My name is Elder Li,” he said, stepping off the tatami mat. “Sprout Tower is a place of training, as I’m sure you’ve already gathered from your trek up here. People and pokémon test their bonds to build a bright future together. I am that final test. Allow me to check the ties between your pokémon and you!”

Quick as a wink, he started the battle with no other words, flinging a pokéball into the air. Light surged from it as it split open, coalescing into a solid shape. A Bellsprout sprung forth, looking spry and ready for a fight. It swayed like the tower’s center beam, back and forth in a lazy fashion. Bullet trotted forward, his claws clicking on the lacquered hard wood floor, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. In spite of the several battles to get here, he was just as lively, and raring to go.

“Bellsprout, use vine whip!” Elder Li barked out, not hesitating to get the first hit in. Lupin instantly retaliated with a command of flame wheel to Bullet. Fire coated his fur almost instantaneously, warding off a majority of the Bellsprout’s stinging vine. He charged forward, a rampaging ball of flame hurtling on fast legs. The Elder’s Bellsprout panicked and started to dart away on surprisingly quick little appendages, attempting to outrun the Growlithe bearing down on it. Bullet was fast, though, living up to his namesake and hit the Bellsprout in the back with his flame wheel attack. The Bellsprout shrieked and went careening wildly through the air.

Light surged upwards, recalling the injured Bellsprout to the safety of its pokeball. Elder Li gave her a nod, then threw his second pokeball. A HootHoot formed in midair, flapping its short, stubby wings. Wide, red eyes peered down at Bullet.

“Hoothoot, use hypnosis!”

Bright light emitted from the Hoothoot’s eyes, much like foresight that Reyna had used back in the Haunted Forest. Just watching it, however, made Lupin realize it was different. She felt tired suddenly, from looking at the waves of red light.

“Don’t look at it, run away!” Riptide’s voice cut through the mental thickness, quick and sharp, like a hot knife through butter. She flinched at the intrusion, and so did Bullet on the battlefield. He had begun to sway, almost like a Bellsprout, uncoordinated and clumsy. The call, however, snapped him out of his tired stupor.

Lupin thought quickly before shouting, “Ember!”

Red-hot fire was spat out, filling the air with cinders, making the air shimmer and dance from heat waves. Smoke curled and coiled upwards as a few hit the hard wood floors, sizzling out before they’d begun to catch. Elder Li’s Hoothoot managed to dive away from most of the fire, but some caught its tail feathers, singing them enough to make flight difficult. It went down hard, bouncing a few times. Bullet pounced almost immediately, dragging the Hoothoot by one wing with his fangs, shaking hard as he bit down. The owl pokémon screeched in agony, beating its other wing uselessly in an attempt to get away.

“Peck attack, Hoothoot!”

The little ball of feathers did as it was bid, turning to stab its beak at Bullet’s face.

“That’s enough, Bullet, let ‘em go!”

The Growlithe leapt nimbly out of the way, bits of his muzzle bloody from where he’d bitten the Hoothoot. The bird flopped uselessly on the ground, screeching and panting. Elder Li recalled the Hoothoot, sighing. He held up a third pokémon, nodding to Lupin.

“My last pokémon. I was certainly not expecting to be beaten twice in one day. Perhaps luck will be on my side, though. Bellsprout, let’s go!”

Another Bellsprout came onto the battlefield, identical to the last he’d sent out. It bobbed and weaved and swayed on the spot. It was held upright on thin leg-like appendages and its comical bulbous head the only thing that stood still. Bullet growled low in his throat, his hackles bristling. Lupin glanced at Riptide.

“You sure you don’t wanna tackle this?”

“Do I look suicidal to you? I rather like having my hide intact, thank you.”

Lupin snorted, but kept Bullet out nonetheless. The blue gator had a point. Bellsprout would probably put a major hurt on Riptide, being at a type disadvantage. Bullet was the best choice, being a fire-type.

“Vine whip!”

“Ember!”

Fire heaved forward, canceling out the vine whip attack before it had even began. The Bellsprout was overcome quickly enough, knocking it clear across the room. It struck the wall, its tiny body making a soft ‘splat’ as it hit before sliding down in an unceremonious heap. Elder Li recalled it, another sigh puffing past his lips.

“My, what an exciting battle!”

He laughed. Lupin stared at him, boggled.

“You…I-I don’t…understand.”

He laughed some more. “The way you battled—it was quite elegant. You were in tune with your pokémon, which could prove useful if you went up against Falkner. Or anyone else, for that matter. You’ll need that harmony when you are together against other opponents.”

Elder Li crossed the small distance between them, shuffling on quiet feet. He dug into one of his flowing sleeves and held out a CD to her. Curious, Lupin moved toward him for a closer inspection. “What is it?”

“My dear girl, it’s TM. Or, if you prefer, it’s a Technical Machine. It contains data to teach a pokémon a move that they would otherwise not be able to learn their entire natural lives on their own. There are many like this. This is TM Flash. With it, a pokémon on your team able to learn it can illuminate even the darkest cave. I want you to take it.”

He pressed it into her hand and curled her fingers with his own, giving it a pat. He flashed her another grin.

“I hope that you learn much on your journey and continue to grow. That was simply a marvelous battle, one of the better ones I’ve had in ages.”

She smiled, although it was a hesitant one at the praise. He stepped back. Elder Li appraised her for a moment longer, then bowed to her. She returned the gesture.

“Thank you for the battle, miss. I can tell you care for your pokémon. You could have sent out your Totodile and risk injury to my Bellsprout, but you chose wisely to stick with your Growlithe. Not only type-advantage smart, but tactically so. I didn’t expect my Hoothoot to fail in his hypnosis attack. He rarely does. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must attend to my team’s injuries…”

And like that, Lupin could tell a dismissal when she was given one. She shuffled off, scooping up Bullet as she did and was immediately assaulted with warm, slobbery kisses from his tongue.

“Did I do good, did I, did I?”

She laughed as they quickly descended, rubbing at his neck scruff and scratching his belly. Riptide made disgruntled noises from her shoulder at the puppy pokémon’s antics.

“Yes, of course you did good. You did _great_!”

He was delighted at his success and even found enough courage to swipe his tongue at Riptide, who hadn’t been paying the Growlithe much attention. He hissed menacingly at the Growlithe. Bullet whined, ears lower against his head and his tail tucking between his legs. Lupin snickered, annoying him further. He swiped a paw at his snout in a vain attempt to wipe off the slobber.

_Damn my stubby arms. Can’t wait until I’m bigger. Than I can wipe my snout all I like and not have to ask help to do it, ever again._

“Okay, no more kisses for Rip, you know he hates that.”

“I’m sorry, I just got all excited. I forgot, I’m sorry,” he whined, looking a little abashed. Riptide kept an eye on him the rest of the way back to the center from then on, since Lupin thought it necessary to carry the furry beast, much to his chagrin.

Just in case.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

 


	20. Fine

**Chapter Nineteen:**  
**Fine**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“ _Andy, what’s happening?”  
__“_ _Gary thinks we should keep up with the crawl because they know what they’re doing, but they don’t know that we know what they’re doing, and basically no one else has a better idea, so_ fuck it. _”  
_**-Sam Chamberlain and Andrew Knightley, “ _The World’s End_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Did you hear about the storms between Cianwood and the Whirl Islands?” A young girl in pink said. She motioned toward a television screen behind her. The small group turned their attention toward it for a moment. Lupin glanced over and slowed her gait across the Pokémon Center lobby, her interest piqued.

“Yeah, I heard about this earlier on the radio. The news said three or four boats and their crews went down. They’ve only found pieces of wreckage that could float to the surface.” One of the boys to her left replied.

“The Sea Guardian must’ve been angry.” The girl said.

“The Sea Guardian is supposed to _protect_. Hence the name ‘ _guardian’_ , Hana.”

The girl in pink, Hana, blushed furiously until her face almost matched her clothes. “I _know_ that. But even _guardians_ can get angry, Kyo.”

There was a moment of silence before the group got up and left, their pokémon in hand, shoulder, or pokéball.

Lupin stared after the small group, before casting her gaze up to a flat-screen television hosting a news channel the group had been watching. Above the droning white noise of the center, Lupin could hear the video loop of a reporter speaking with someone from Cianwood. It switched to the news anchor to move on to the next story. Riptide stirred on her shoulder, watching words scroll by. Bullet barked at them to hurry up. That got the ball rolling, and Lupin started after him, turning toward the hallway that would lead them to the upper level staircase.

“Why did you stop?” Riptide tilted his head to view her more properly. Lupin mounted the stairs after the Growlithe. She shrugged.

“They were talking about that sea guardian near Cianwood. Those kids in the lobby, not the news people. Said that’s why the storms went on. That’s…the sea guardian, that’s supposed to be Lugia, right?”

“Bah. Superstitious little brats. I’m sure they believe that Palkia and Dialga control time and space, and that Giratina lives in some world rift parallel to ours,” Riptide hissed in distaste. The Growlithe ahead of them paused and whined, his ears pinning to his head.

“Why do you hate people who believe in the gods and guardians?”

“Because it’s superstitious hoo-ha. They believe in things they can’t see or feel. They make up stories to explain away why the sun sets or the storms rage. Even now, after science has enlightened such events as naturally-occurring phenomena, they still praise these pokémon—that may or may not exist—as the reason why these events continue to occur.” He eyed the Growlithe with mild disdain. “I don’t like wasting my time with chasing down ideas that haven’t been proven in hundreds of years. No one has presented substantial proof that any of these ‘Legendaries’ exist.”

Bullet paused in his trek to look at the Totodile on Lupin’s shoulder, glowering sullenly.

“Just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We breathe air and those smart guys in labs, they proved it’s there even if we can’t see it, haven’t they?”

Riptide was taken aback by the response and snapped his jaws with a resounding ‘ _clack_.’ Lupin stared between the two, rather impressed at the Growlithe’s observation.

“Ya know…” she said after a few moments of awkward and stilted silence. “He actually has a point.”

Bullet turned away with his nose in the air, a smug doggy grin on his face, and a bounce in his step as he crossed the hallway to their door. Lupin slowly followed, trying and failing rather miserably at hiding her grin from Riptide. He hissed at her in belated response.

“…stupid Growlithe.”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Shirubā got away. What a gyp.”

“Who’s Shirubā?”

Bullet tilted his head at the werewolf, whining as he paused to stop and assess his jump up onto the bed. Riptide was already sprawled half on her belly, the other on the bed. She absently rubbed her hand along his back scutes, occasionally bringing her fingers up to rub at his head. As soon as the Growlithe came padding across the bed, he collapsed on her other side, and she curled her other arm around him.

“That redheaded kid we saw earlier at the Sprout Tower. The police took our report and ran with it, but it looks like he’s not in Violet City anymore.”

“Oh. _Him_. He was a mean kid.” The Growlithe lifted his head up to glance at Riptide. “You said he stole a pokémon, right? Aren’t thieves like that supposed to be locked up?”

“I don’t know. Did _you_ ever get locked up in all your years of stealing?”

“Hey!”

“Riptide,” Lupin warned, and he let out a soft croaking groan in response.

“Fine, fine,” he sighed back. “We met him on the road coming from New Bark Town. He fought us then and there, with the same Chikorita Professor Elm had at his lab. The police were informed of his theft and they’ve been on alert since. Or so we thought. It seems Violet City has no such concerns, or else they would have caught him as soon as he strolled through town.”

“How did he do it, though?”

Riptide shifted his head to stare at the puppy pokémon. “We don’t know. They didn’t release that information to us. And neither the professor nor his assistant see anything or know how it happened either.” Another turn of his head and he was staring at Lupin pointedly. “But enough on that, there’s nothing more we can do about it right now.”

“I could hunt him down,” Lupin suggested. “I know his scent. I could probably track him down and bring him in.”

The Totodile snorted, while Bullet stared on with a look akin to amazement and confusion.

“Is that what a werewolf can do? They can smell things out?”

“More or less…I guess. My nose is pretty good. I don’t necessarily get lost easily.”

“No. Let the police handle it,” Riptide said, flaring his nostrils and closing his eyes briefly. “You have more pressing things to attend to. Such as this next meeting with Falkner.”

“Which is looking more and more like a prospective gym battle. I don’t want to battle him, though.”

“If you had to in order to get any information you needed, would you, though?”

“I…” Lupin stopped herself short, realizing she wasn’t entirely too sure. She drew herself up a little more onto her pillow, frowning at the expectant Totodile and Growlithe, both staring and waiting. Riptide had that perpetually permanent crooked smile on his face, but she was never truly sure what was going through his mind sometimes. The lack of facial expressions tended to be a good mask. But Bullet was an easier read. His blue eyes were wide and brimming with energy and his body heat fluctuated with his mood. He was hot to the touch, but not uncomfortably so, and his body was coiled and tense, as though ready to start bouncing off the walls from sheer excitement.

“I don’t…know, I…I didn’t really think that far.”

Riptide considered her for a few moments longer, then closed his eyes. “Then think on how important it is to you that you talk to him without those restrictions barring you two. He wants a show, it seems like. If you give it to him, he’ll most likely be more willing to extend the olive branch. If you refuse, then you might have lost out on a potential source of information, but you can always move on to the next source. Azalea Town and Goldenrod are to the south, while Ecruteak and Olivine are to the west. Mahogany and Blackthorn are to the north.”

“You’re being…awfully relaxed about this. I thought you would want to fight Falkner.”

The Totodile hummed for a few seconds, opened his eyes and clacked his jaws. “Yes, I do. But that’s what I want as a prospective battler. You’re my trainer and not just a lab tech assistant now. You make the decisions for me and for Bullet. I may not like your decision to crawl away from a possible battle, but I was not _just_ bred to battle, I was bred to be a partner for a future trainer. That means I…I follow your lead.”

He watched her and for a moment, Lupin almost forgot Bullet was there too, her focus was so intense. When his tongue swiped across her cheek, Lupin jumped, startled. He sat up, staring at her with a wide doggy grin, panting while he rested his front paws on her thigh.

“He’s right. I mean, I’m not— _I_ wasn’t bred or anything _fancy_ like Riptide was or nothing, but…he’s right. We’re your pokémon. We follow your lead. If you don’t wanna battle gym leaders, then you don’t have to. We can’t force you.” He slurped his tongue back into his mouth and moved closer, placing a paw on her stomach. “But I wanna help you however I can. I don’t think I’d like not remembering Benjamin, my…my old trainer. So…whatever we do, I’ll help you.”

She stared between the both of them, first at Bullet, then at Riptide. They waited, anticipating her answer expectantly. Slowly, she sat back up, and smiled at the both of them moments before scooping them up and pulling them into an embrace. “Thanks, guys…we’ll head out there tomorrow first thing, and if we have to fight, we’ll do it. But if we don’t well…then that’s fine too.”

The Growlithe to her right gave a happy yowl, brimming with excitement. Riptide hummed in a rather pleased manner, the vibrations thrumming gently against her shoulder. There was no more time for hesitating and overthinking, she realized.

Now it was time to start acting.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The Violet City Gym overlooked everything in its surrounding area, a towering behemoth compared to most buildings. Its colour scheme was just as muted and somber as the rest of the city. Not a single building was overly garish or out-of-place in Violet City, none that Lupin noticed anyway. And, strangely enough, the gym held true to a violet hue, as though it had been purposefully schemed as such in honour of its city’s namesake. It was a pleasing shade, but it also briefly reminded her of one of the individuals in her photos. The thought was fleeting and short-lived, however, when a loud screech arose above them. Three heads craned upwards toward the lead gray sky, a precursor to another hefty downpour. Riptide hummed thoughtfully as his yellow-red eyes spotted something high up, flitting back and forth to the wind’s whims above. It was noticeable for its pale colours that stood out rather starkly against the dark background of the sky.

Another figure rose swiftly, this one dark and almost discernable to find at first. Lupin’s ears twitched under her hat at the commotion the two made. Shockwaves visibly appeared in midair, thrust forth from the powerful wing strokes of the two combatants. She stared, amazed at the sight before Bullet barked at her. She looked at her feet first, expecting to see him, but quickly found he was waiting across the street by the gym entrance.

“Hey, c’mon! We can see these fights better from inside! I heard they have some kinda platform you can watch these things from!”

Quickly crossing the street, she cast the two battlers above in the heavens one last look, before stepping into the retreat of the gym. Behind her, a few moments later, rain began to fall.

“I thought the weather was done with the rains,” she commented quietly to Riptide as she stepped further into the receiving lobby. It was empty, save for a front desk tucked away in the corner. The occupant behind the desk, a dark haired woman wearing a pair of rim-horned glasses, looked up at her, and then smiled.

“It seems the weather decided to go out with a final bang this spring,” he replied back as Lupin moved toward the desk.

“Good afternoon, ma’am. I’m guessing you’re here to schedule a battle with Falkner?”

“Well, I actually only wanted to talk with him. He told me to come see him after defeating the sages and the Elder at Sprout Tower. It’s about some research I needed help with.”

The woman’s smile deflated momentarily, taken aback, before she turned her eyes to her computer screen.

“Let’s see…I’ll have to speak with him beforehand, just to confirm this. He’s battling another trainer right now, so if you’d like, we can go up on the battle platform and wait it out until he’s finished.”

“That’s fine,” she nodded to the woman. She stood, unfolding long legs as she stepped out from behind the desk toward another door that, presumably, led out to the main gym floor. Lupin followed with Riptide on her shoulders and Bullet at her heels as they stepped through. Inside, it was hollow and wide-spaced. It wasn’t until Lupin looked up to see that the main attraction wasn’t on ground level. It was on a platform built high above them, and from the way there was cheering that drifted down to greet them, there were plenty of people up there at that moment.

Lupin looked back to find the woman moving toward a lift that ran on a track, leading up to the platform. She followed and it wasn’t long before they were rising up high above ground level. A sense of vertigo overcame her, but there wasn’t fear building up in her gut at the dizzying height. It was an expectant and comforting warmth, one that settled her instead of making her uncomfortable. The woman didn’t seem to notice how relaxed she was and when the ride was over, simply stepped off and motioned for Lupin to follow. Bullet wobbled on unsure legs as he timidly followed after her, keeping his belly low to the platform as he slunk along. Riptide dug his claws tightly into her shoulders, hissing quietly against her cheek.

“You guys okay?”

“I’m a water-type. My home field is in the water. He’s a fire-breathing dog who’s lived his life on the streets, not flying the air. What do you think the math adds up to, hm?” He hissed back. There was a nervousness in his tone Lupin hadn’t ever heard before.

“Wait. Are you…are you afraid of heights?” She had to grin a little at that. The Totodile was usually rather laid back and relaxed most of the time, but there was a tension in his body and voice now. It was something she noticed right off the bat.

“ _No_ , I just prefer my feet on the ground or better yet, in the water. I’m more comfortable. It has _nothing_ to do with fear. I simply don’t like being this high up.” He snapped back. Lupin snickered.

“I won’t tell anyone if you’re afraid, you know. It’s okay to be scared.”

“I’m _not_ scared, I’m _uncomfortable_! Those are two very distinct emotions!”

“Scaredy-gator,” Bullet called to the Totodile. If he could, Riptide would have scowled.

“Look at what you started!” He’d nip Lupin’s ears for this later. The Growlithe only laughed.

Bullet followed after the Lupin, his belly slowly rising higher off the ground now as he became used to the platform. Below on the ground, they couldn’t see anything past the platform, but now they could see that the roof was gone and it left the sky available to them. A small section of bleachers were erected to allow prospective challengers to watch. An overhang protected the seats from the weather, although occasionally the wind would send out spritzes of water onto the onlookers.

Out in the main arena, two trainers stood at either end of the battlefield. One Lupin saw, predictably, was Falkner and the other was a girl, looking to be in her early teens and dressed in a white shirt, white socks and shoes, and white blouse. Even the giant bow holding her hair up was white, as was the bag she had by her feet.

Both trainers were focused intensely on the sky, where their pokémon were battling it out. One was a Pidgeotto and the other a Murkrow. The winds kicked up, spraying the sprinkling of rain all over the place. Lupin lifted a hand to block it from her eyes. Falkner cried out to the Pidgeotto, bellowing a final command. The attack was fast, another boom of air slicing toward the Murkrow. It was made all the more menacing by the fact that the rain made it more visible. The Murkrow tried ducking it with a sharp dive, but it slammed into the black-feathered bird’s backside instead. It was sent spiraling to the arena ground in an out of control tailspin. The girl bolted across the battlefield after a failed command to get upright again. She made it in the nick of time to catch the downed bird in her arms.

The Pidgeotto came sailing in to land beside Falkner. A man in a striped shirt came trotting onto the field and declared Falkner the winner, as his challenger had no other pokémon to battle with. The girl quickly retreated, clutching the unconscious Murkrow to her chest toward the lift. Bullet whined, watching her go.

“Is…is the bird gonna be all right?”

“Perhaps. But that blow to the backside didn’t look pleasant,” Riptide answered offhandedly. He had his eyes on the woman who had escorted them there. She waltzed toward Falkner with purpose in her step, and the young man turned to her when she was closer. The crowd on the bleachers watched, waiting, talking excitedly amongst themselves. Most ignored Lupin, too busy either prepping themselves or waiting for the next match to start.

The Totodile on her shoulder tapped Lupin on the cheek and she flinched in surprise after a minute or so.

“Pay attention. You’re good to go now.”

She turned to see the woman was done talking and Falkner waving her over. She did so, liking the smile he was sporting less and less. Bullet whined and grumbled under his breath as rain pelted his fur.

Falkner raked his eyes over Lupin and her team, an almost hungry, assessing look. The Pidgeotto at his side did much the same. Neither of them appeared too distressed at being soaked by the downpour.

“Well, now! Seems you finally made it. I was beginning to get worried you’d skipped town.” He motioned to the woman at his side. “If you’d like, we can start the search now, but I have another request before we get into that.”

“You want to battle, don’t you?”

He didn’t appear too surprised at her assessment. He grinned a little. “Very sharp. I like that.”

Lupin sighed, and caught Riptide’s eye. He rattle-laughed. “Told you.”

“Fine. I don’t see why you didn’t take the pictures the day you came to the Academy, though.”

“I wouldn’t have wanted an angry lady such as yourself come knocking down my doors if I took them and decided you had a change of heart later on, now would I? Besides, if you wanted to leave the city, I doubt you’d have left them with me. You’d have had to come back here regardless of whether or not I had anything to give you. I rather prefer this to the other option.”

“And if I say no?” She prodded. He shrugged.

“More your loss than mine. I’m not the one with amnesia. I know exactly who I am. It’s your life you’re dismissing if you did that, not mine.”

Riptide laughed again. “And another point to me…”

Lupin clenched her jaw and squeezed her fists at her side, before releasing the tension altogether.

“…fine. You want a show, you got one.”

_Prick._

Falkner’s grin grew wider. “That’s the spirit. Gotta get the Butterfree out of the Metapod somehow. _Monsieur_ Dervish told me you were a particularly _stubborn_ student he had this semester. Smart, but stubborn.”

_I can’t tell if he’s insulting me or complimenting me._

He moved back to his previous position on the arena field, and without needing a guiding word, Lupin moved to the opposite side. Every step made her feel like she had lead weights in her boots. She heard groans and jeering from the bleachers, and one rather loud, “Oh come _on_! I’ve been waiting for _days_ to get my Zephyr Badge!”

“Change of plans and apologies in advance to everyone who has been waiting, especially since the weather’s a bit less than desirable! We’re having one more battle scheduled in, very last minute, I’m sure you understand!” Falkner called from his position on the field. Another chorus of groans rose up, some scowling at the werewolf, but others merely hunkered down. The secretary at his side took this as a cue to move away.

“You already know who I am and what I specialize in, so there’s no point in some long-winded, grandeur gesture to spew about! But one thing I hate, it’s when people say you can clip flying-type pokémon’s wings with a jolt of electricity.” He nodded purposefully toward the sky, heavy and burdened with what seemed like one last spring shower shebang. He focused his gaze back to Lupin, his eyes intense and the earlier borderline friendliness gone now. “I won’t allow such insults to bird pokémon! I’ll show you the real power of the magnificent bird pokémon!”

With that said, he pulled a pokéball from his belt and threw it. Light spilled from the split orb, a shape coalesced, and a Pidgey stood in the middle of the arena, blinking twice and ruffling its feathers before taking to the air. Lupin glanced at Bullet, who was staring at the little bird intensely. She gave a sharp, short whistle and he lurched forward. The Growlithe paused once to shake the water off of him, then stopped on his side of the arena. The referee came back out and stopped at the mid-line of the field. Falkner nodded to the man, who lifted an arm above his head, a green flag on a stick in his hand.

“The rules remain the same as the previous matches: there will be two pokémon admitted per trainer! When one trainer has no more pokémon or they are unable to continue battling, the trainer automatically forfeits the match.” He paused, glancing to Falkner and then over at Lupin. After the pause, he threw down his arm with the flag, letting it snap as it rushed. “Begin!”

“Nettle, tackle attack!”

“Dodge it, Bullet! Counter with a bite attack!”

The Pidgey came soaring in quickly, a blur of tan and cream feathers dive bombing the striped fire-dog. Bullet dove off to the side when the Pidgey came close enough and snapped his jaws at the bird. A few nipped feathers puffed into the air and the Growlithe spat some downy from his teeth, but the little bird kept on course, circling back around. Falkner’s Pidgey remained higher up, just out of reach. Bullet snarled, his ears splaying back against his head. Bullet hunkered lower to the platform, waiting.

“This rain isn’t helping him. He won’t be able to use his fire-type attacks very effectively.” Riptide muttered, hissing quietly as he tilted his head back.

Lupin stared between Bullet, the Pidgey, and Falkner. His features were a mask; it was hard to get a read off him. He was confident, that much was for sure, but at least he wasn’t gloating about it. Not yet.

Rain continued to pelt them all, and she could feel dozens of eyes focused on her, the pokemon, Falkner.

Then it hit her.

“Bullet, use flame wheel!”

The Growlithe jumped in surprise, glancing back at her with wide, blue eyes.

“ _What_?! But it’s raining! It won’t work!”

“Bullet! Just trust me, do it! And don’t let up until your fur’s _completely_ covered in fire, not just parts of it!”

He hesitated, before turning back around to stare at the overhead Pidgey. Falkner barked at it for another tackle attack, guessing the same thing: fire wasn’t going to stand much of a chance out in this weather. The Growlithe took a hit, but it was a small price paid for a delayed start up. His fur superheated and steam began to rise as it dried rapidly, only to be soaked by the rain seconds later. The reaction was near-instantaneous: his fur eventually caught fire and the rain continued to pound away at him, and the resulting effect soon shrouded the arena in an impromptu smokescreen.

The Pidgey was engulfed as well as the steam rose higher and higher. It squawked in protest, but didn’t dare move higher or lower, waiting for Falkner’s next move.

“Use odor sleuth, Bullet! Find that Pidgey!”

She heard a woof in return before a yowl of victory from Bullet. On the other side of the arena, she heard Falkner shout, “Nettle, use gust, blow away all of this!”

“Jump up and use bite!”

The wind picked up from the Pidgey’s attack, but it ended just as abruptly and a scream of pain shattered any doubts Bullet had missed. The smoke began to clear slowly, and the referee stepped closer, bobbing back and forth, trying to determine if the match was finished or if there were still combatants fighting.

Bullet stood off to the far side close to Lupin’s half, an unconscious Pidgey in his jowls. Rivulets of red were dribbling from between his teeth and being washed away by the rain. Falkner stared, his expression frozen halfway between anger and blankness. He turned to look at the referee, who lifted a red flag up on Falkner’s end.

“Nettle the Pidgey is unable to battle. Challenger Lupin has won this match.”

“Bullet, drop the Pidgey,” Lupin called, and the Growlithe did as he was bid, gently depositing the bird on the ground. He trotted over closer with a wag of his sopping wet tail.

“Did I do good? Did I, did I?”

“You did a stupendous job, Bullet,” she said, dropping to a knee and opening her arms out. He ran the rest of the way over, pouncing on her and licking her cheek. She hugged him, not minding getting soaked further by the puppy pokémon’s wet fur.

“It wasn’t stupid, was it? I thought I did everything good!”

“Stupendous, you halfwit. It means—”

“It means you did a _great_ job, a _really_ great one,” Lupin interrupted Riptide, before patting Bullet’s flank. “Go back out there, we have one more pokémon to fight.”

“Okay!”

Riptide hissed, staring intently at the Pidgeotto at Falkner’s side.

“You know he’s going to be bringing out that one, don’t you?”

“I know. You think Bullet can take him?”

The Totodile exhaled slowly. “Possibly. If the conditions were right. Today’s not a good day to be a fire-type, though. I told you this already. Be prepared to send me out, just in case. And Lupin? Don’t try the smokescreen again. That Pidgeotto has stronger wings than the Pidgey does and will just blow it all away a whole lot quicker. That’s tactical advice.”

Riptide curled tighter around her shoulders, his claws digging into her. She reached up and rubbed at his head as Bullet stopped on his side of the arena. The rain continued to pelt them all, cutting away the last of Bullet’s smokescreen. Falkner tilted his head toward the Pidgeotto at his side and nodded to the large bird.

“Go on, Ophelia,” he said, turning back to the arena. “The wind is finally with us! This battle will be in our favour!”

The Pidgeotto took flight with a shrill cry, rising up to the heavens high above, taking to circling about. Bullet squinted and growled as he stared up at the circling bird pokémon.

It didn’t take Falkner long to go on the offensive. He ordered his Pidgeotto to send a gust attack down on Bullet.

“Use flame wheel! Get up and knock that bird outta the sky!”

Fire met water, causing steam to instantly break out. The wind picked up from Falkner’s Pidgeotto, causing all the steam, fire, rainwater, and air to stir restlessly. Bullet yelped as the fire alongside his fur suddenly whipped out of existence and the Pidgeotto was dive-bombing rapidly towards the Growlithe. He dodged too late and took the brunt of the hit, skittering along the arena. Lupin winced as he came to a full stop and struggled up to his paws. Riptide hissed loudly.

“He’s had enough, call him back and send me out!”

“Not yet. Trust me,” Lupin hissed back. The Pidgeotto skimmed the outskirts of the arena. The others in the bleachers were all crying out. Some were rooting for the little Growlithe, while others screamed for Falkner to put the fire dog out of his misery. Bullet stumbled to his paws, glowering at the Pidgeotto, following the bird pokémon as it glided along.

“Tackle, Ophelia, take ‘em down!”

The Pidgeotto veered sharply, picking up speed and hurtling toward Bullet.

“Now, Bullet, ember attack!”

For a split moment, while the air was still clear, Lupin caught a glimpse of shock on Falkner’s face. Then fire split the arena in half, hiding the other trainer from sight. The jet of flame shot toward the bird, engulfing her completely. She shrieked in pain and anguish, flapping away hard to escape the fire. Rainwater sliced through the remainders, making the fire hiss as it was put out. Bullet stood on one end of the battlefield. Ophelia the Pidgeotto was fluttering listlessly on the other, one wing held out an awkward angle. Lupin could see the charred feathers and the flesh beneath was blistered and bare. The bird squawked tiredly and looked to Falkner, as though for reprieve.

Falkner kept his eyes locked on Lupin, frowning hard.

“Ophelia, roost.”

The bird cooed and laboriously tucked her burnt wing close to her body as a silvery glow overtook her form. She shuddered and the glow sustained itself for several more seconds before it faded away. Most of her burnt feathers were repaired, but the burnt part of her wing still remained and she kept fussing with it.

 _She’s burned. She’s not going to last long if it keeps chipping away at her health._ Lupin looked to Bullet. He was tired, but he still had fight in him.

“Take her down while you can, let’s go with another flame wheel again,” Lupin called to the Growlithe. He lurched forward on unsteady legs, mustering up the last of his strength to set his coat of fur on fire again. It sizzled every time water hit it, but his fur caught after a few belated moments. Falkner’s Pidgeotto attempted to get airborne again, but with her wing burnt, it made it nearly impossible. Bullet snarled as he got himself into a charge, tearing after the bird.

With a final burst, he hit the Pidgeotto and sent them both careening toward the ground in a fiery heap. Ophelia screeched and kicked feebly at the puppy pokémon until a red beam of light recalled her. Falkner was on the other side, holding out a pokéball. Slowly, he lowered his arm and clipped the pokéball to his belt alongside the other one. He stared at Bullet for the longest time, still on the ground, the fire on his fur puttering out and sizzling to nothingness as rainwater continued chipping away at him.

Then his gaze slid to Lupin, who was frozen between standing there and rushing to the puppy pokémon’s side.

The referee flipped a red flag in Falkner’s direction again after what seemed an eternity.

“Ophelia the Pidgeotto is unable to battle! Challenger Lupin wins the match!”

A sigh of relief and disbelief escaped her lips and slowly, she moved forward over to Bullet to pick him up. He was exhausted and barely able to lift his head, but when she picked up him he managed to get a good lick across her cheek. Riptide exhaled loudly against her other cheek.

“I did good, right?”

“You did an amazing job, buddy. You just rest now.”

And with that said, he flopped against her shoulder with a long, drawn out whine and tired sigh.

She turned at the sound of footsteps approaching to find Falkner heading her way. She stood quickly, tucking the puppy pokémon closer to her. His face was once more an unreadable mask. When he was within earshot, she called to him, “Well? How about that deal?”

At first, he didn’t react. He stopped close to her and studied her for a long moment, his eyes raking over the exhausted Growlithe in her arms. His shoulders shook and a smile alighted his face.

“That…was rather impressive. Crazy, but impressive.” He said as he dipped a hand into a pocket. When he pulled it out, he held out a shiny piece of metal shaped in a pair of rudimentary wings. “You’ve earned this.”

Lupin stared, taken aback. Then she gathered herself again and stared sullenly at the taller man.

“I didn’t come here to fight for a badge, Falkner. I came here for information.”

Falkner blinked and stared at her as though she’d grown a second head. His eyes flicked between the Growlithe and the Totodile on her shoulders, then back at her.

“You really _are_ crazy. Most trainers don’t reject a gym badge, especially after they’ve certainly earned it.”

“Well, call me an exception.”

Falkner sighed, looked rather disappointed. “Okay, all right then. I suppose that’s it then. If you go back downstairs and meet with Tohru, the woman who brought you up here, she can help out with the search a bit. If all else fails, I’d suggest hitting up Bugsy down in Azalea Town to the south. They live near a port city and sometimes traffic hits there before heading to Goldenrod.” He paused, halfway turned on his heel, and added, “And Lupin? I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

Lupin stared after the taller man in stunned silence until a clack in her ear reminded her to get moving again. When they were well away from the prying eyes of those on the bleachers, with the call of Falkner calling it quits for the day and a chorus of groans and one loud “OH COME ON!”, Riptide spoke.

“You really _are_ insane. First the Spinarak and Ariados, then the Onix. And now this.”

“I didn’t set fire to the bird.”

“No, but you seem to have a predisposition to liking things catching fire. Maybe you should have gone with that little mole-rat, Cyndaquil.”

She snorted at him and reached up to rub his head. “And miss all of your charming dialogue? Please. You can just put me out whenever I get too hotheaded.”

“Ha. Now, let’s go find these people of yours before you forget about them again.”

“ _Really?!_ ”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	21. Odds and Ends

**Chapter Twenty:** **  
Odds and Ends**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_“What do you think happens now?”  
“Everything that happens next.”_ **  
-Booth and Bones, “ _Bones_ ”**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“So, wait, there’s a bunch of ruins on the way to Ecruteak that civilians can just traipse right through? Don’t the…the diggers—the archaeologists. Don’t they get a little…offended if someone ruined something from, well, from the ruins?”

Riptide sighed heavily, wishing once again that his limbs were long enough to pinch his snout. And that his snout could crinkle like a mammal’s just for the “ _I’m annoyed. See that I’m annoyed? I’m annoyed now. You made me annoyed,_ ” look.

“They section off parts of the ruins for tours to go through. Or so I’ve heard. The professor’s made mention of it before, and has even been asked to come down to consult on some…strange pokémon discovered there.”

“Strange…pokémon?”

“Well, hieroglyphs of strange-looking pokémon and suspected species living there. Or so the head of the dig has repeatedly stated in his calls to the professor. Strangely enough, they take after the glyph shapes of your language, the more common tongue your people seem fond of speaking.”

“I wouldn’t say my people, but I get your point.”

“So are we going to this dig place or are we going to Azalea Town,” Bullet called from below, glancing up at the two as he whined. “And how come the blue lizard gets to ride your shoulders? How come I can’t do that?”

“Because you’re too big and wriggly to sit still long enough to enjoy the ride, even if you were small enough,” Lupin simply replied, earning a whine from the Growlithe, who continued trotting along, but with lowered ears and a sagging tail.

“Oh, you know you’d rather be down there, running around. You’d get too restless up here, sagging about my shoulders like this lazy gator.”

Riptide gave a disgruntled hiss and indignant, “That was uncalled for. Rude,” while Bullet perked up a little more.

“I guess you’re right. I wouldn’t be able to go sniff where I’d like if I was stuck up there!”

The Pokémon Center lobby was bustling as they checked out. Lupin eyed the patrons with mild interest while Bullet sat beside her, busying himself with a particularly nasty itch behind his ear. Riptide muttered under his breath the several varying species he could pinpoint visually without effort. He paused, however, at the sight of another Totodile. The other caught Riptide’s eye and they stared at one another as Lupin finished logging in the service and time she’d utilized and returned the room key.

She noticed the distant stare Riptide was conducting from the corner of her eye and turned to look as well. The spell broke, and the Totodile gave a nod to Riptide, then turned excitedly toward its trainer, hopping on its hind limbs for attention. The trainer, a young boy of perhaps twelve or thirteen, turned to the mewling pokémon and busied himself with it.

When they were outside, Lupin stopped long enough to ask what that had been about.

“That was my one of my nest-mates. One of my many brothers and sisters. It looks like he’s finally gathered himself a trainer.”

“Do you…do you want to go say hi?” The question had been an automatic reflex and she was surprised at herself for asking. Riptide bumped his jaw against her cheek.

“No. We have our own plans. A family reunion is not one of them. Those of the Feraligatr line do not coddle one another like other breeds. He’ll be fine. We’ve already established our contact.”

“And…that little nod is enough?”

He snorted. “ _Mammals_. You wouldn’t understand. My kind socialize when we need to. This is not one of those times.” He bumped her cheek again. “We have another city to get to. We should get going, since Falkner was a dead end. Hopefully Bugsy won’t have as big an inflated ego as that birdbrained human.”

Lupin hesitated only for a moment before she started walking again.

“So, how far is Azalea Town? I’ve never been outside of Violet City,” Bullet said as he trotted alongside Lupin. Riptide tilted his head to look down at the Growlithe.

“Roughly a week, if even that. We have to pass through Route Thirty-Two and Union Cave before we’re close to Azalea.”

“Union…Cave? We have to go through a cave?”

The Totodile eyed the puppy pokémon a little longer. “You’ll be fine. You have fire in your belly. You can use that to light the way through.”

“A-and if I don’t? Have any in my belly, I mean?”

“Then you’ll stumble about aimlessly, get lost, and starve to death in the dark.”

“ _Riptide_ , stop being mean on purpose. Bullet, you’ll be fine. I promise you, I won’t let _anything_ bad happen to you.” Lupin stressed through clenched teeth, flicking the Totodile upside the head. Riptide responded with a well-placed nip and a hiss in return.

Before either of them could retort, however, the Pokégear in her pocket began bleating away. The werewolf jumped in surprise as she hurriedly fished it out.

“Uh…I…hello?”

“Lupin! It’s Professor Elm! Oh, thank goodness, I almost forgot I had this number, I was going to call the Pokemon Center first before realizing you must’ve left and then I found this number hanging on my monitor—”

Nervous laughter sounded off on the other end. Lupin exchanged looks between Riptide and Bullet as she stepped to the side to allow a woman and her Persian pass by. Bullet growled, distracted by the large cat as it sauntered past with twitching whiskers and a graceful stride.

“Er…Professor?”

“Hm? Oh, yes! I was calling to congratulate you!”

“Congratulate—you mean my class? I graduated from that about four days ago, Professor Elm. You’re a little late on the uptake…”

“Well, I was calling to _belatedly_ congratulate you on that—top of your class, I _knew_ you were a smart young lady! But I was _also_ calling to congratulate you on your first gym battle! Falkner called me and told me all about it—and with a _Growlithe_ in the _rain_ , that was a very risky maneuver, considering it’s a fire-type and the rain probably didn’t help it very much—,”

“Prof-professor, you’re rambling. And I never took the gym badge.”

A small pause passed over the phone that delved into the realm of awkward after nearly ten whole seconds went by.

“You…you didn’t—that can’t be right. Falkner said he made sure you took the badge.”

“I didn’t. He tried to give it to me, but I…”

She frowned, thinking back, before she jumped, like she’d been shocked.

“Oh, sonuva—don’t tell me…”

She dug around in her pockets furiously before producing a tin from one of her pockets she’d never seen before. Lo and behold, she popped it open and the Violet City gym badge sat snuggly inside it. The silver finish gleamed in the light as it caught on the wing-like designs.

“Ho-how did he even get this in my coat?!”

_Sneaky bastard!_

“…I take it you didn’t accept it and he forced it on you anyway.”

She shoved the tin into her pocket, pinching the bridge of her nose as she adjusted her hold on the pokégear.

“Very. Astute. I’m taking this back, I didn’t want it in the first place.”

“Falkner was right…you really are stubborn. Most trainers generally don’t reject the honour of winning a gym badge.”

“Don’t—say that, Professor Elm! You can’t _say_ that, you barely know me!”

“And you barely know yourself, so that makes two of us.”

She scowled, ignoring the concerned whine from Bullet and rattle laugh of Riptide in her other ear. She couldn’t argue that, even if she wanted. He was right.

“There was…another reason I was calling,” he sighed, his tone changing and it immediately set Lupin on the alert.

“Is…is everything all right?”

“Hm? Oh, yes. I remember you called me about Shirubā the other day and how he had been seen in Violet City, and it reminded me of…well, I think you should head over to the Pokémart before you leave town. You’re headed for Azalea Town, correct?”

“Professor, what’s wrong?”

“Just—please. Phillip is waiting for you at the Pokémart. He’ll explain everything.”

Before she knew it, the professor had hung up with a hurried goodbye, and Lupin stared at the pokégear in her hand, stunned and silent. A pawing at her leg reminded her she was still in public and she stirred, stuffing the device back into another coat pocket.

“I…guess we’re going to the Pokémart before we skip town.”

Bemused and curious, she shouldered her pack more securely before heading down the street. At least it was closer toward the edge of town and on the way out. She listened to Bullet as he reminisced in the city he’d grown up in, while keeping an eye on him as he scuttled to and fro.

“So, why does your professor want us to go to the Pokémart? I thought we got all the supplies we needed last night,” the Growlithe finally pressed. Lupin frowned, unsure of how to answer that at first before she sighed and threw up her hands.

“Who knows? He’s got a lot on his mind and sometimes he gets…kinda scatterbrained. I’m not saying he’s like that all the time, but sometimes…it kinda makes ya wonder.”

“If I remember his schedule, he’s possibly preparing for a dissertation to get a new grant from his collective research. He’s the head of the scientific community here in Johto, and that affords a lot of resources and research opportunities. But in order to maintain that lofty title, he has to show continual progress in his studies.”

“You sure know a lot,” Bullet chipped in. Riptide regarded the Growlithe once more, and puffed his chest a little more in pride.

“I was in his lab for a long while, and while the other two focused on playing, I wanted to learn more about everything the professor studied. And humans talk so much aloud to us, they forget that we can understand them, even if we can’t really communicate with them that well.”

“Lupin can understand us.”

“That’s…different.” Lupin interjected. They paused at a crosswalk beside a young man toting around a Pineco in his arms.

“How?”

Lupin opened her mouth to answer, but slowly realized she didn’t really have one that she could easily explain. She didn’t really even understand how it all worked. She glanced at Riptide from the corner of her eye. “Help?”

He hissed out a sigh.

“Some people can understand pokémon thoroughly like Lupin. It’s a rare gift, and only a small percentage of the population are known to shown signs of it. Some researchers insist that it’s genetic, as some generations have consecutively shown predispositions to understanding and communicating in full with pokémon. Others, however, have made the ill-conceived argument that it’s along the lines of spiritual connections with pokémon. They try to push the dispute that those who are closer to their pokémon than others are able to speak with us.” Riptide huffed a little and muttered under his breath before continuing.

“Some wish to conduct tests on young children, however. There’s a theory going around that the younger a child is and the more exposed they are to pokémon in their early developmental years, the more likely they are to naturally develop this gift. The less interaction and the older they get, the more likely they are to lose it completely. It’s been theorized that the gift is there, always there, even in adult humans, but it’s poorly developed, atrophied and weak, and only needs a spark to reawaken it so as to be put to use again.”

“Oh, wow. So…if everyone is capable, then…everyone could understand us? If they knew how to use that skill again?” Bullet pressed further. His eyes were wide with a look of quiet astonishment.

“It’s only a hypothesis at this point in time,” Riptide nodded. “Some are certain that if they exposed children more often than usual, the skill would remain into adulthood, but it still needs stronger evidence to gain any ground. At least, that’s what Professor Elm was saying when it came across his desk. It was around the time I first got to the lab, actually.”

“Then what about me? I’m an adult.”

“You need an adult,” the Totodile snorted, ignoring the side-eyed glare Lupin sent him. He rattle-laughed at her and patted her cheek with a paw. “You’re more sensitive, I’m guessing, due to your…inhuman nature. You’re closer to wild things than humans are. Ergo, you can communicate with us more easily than the average person. It’s quite possible that it’s merely a naturally biological thing for you.”

Her glower lessened slightly after he finished, although she wasn’t entirely appeased. A blur of movement alerted her, and she looked up to see Bullet sniffing out something ahead of them. He paused by a tree and sniffed it before relieving himself beside it. Riptide rumbled in discontent.

“Must you piss in front of us? Couldn’t you have done that in the alley?”

“I’m just marking my territory for the last time, lizard, calm down. I’m probably not going to see Violet City again for a long time.”

“ _Crocodilian_. I don’t do that _tongue_ thing, fur ball—”

Lupin pinched the Totodile’s mouth shut with a mild grin thrown Bullet’s way. “Aaaaand that’s enough out of the peanut gallery for today. We’re here. C’mon, let’s go see Phillip.”

Riptide hissed low in his throat, promising once more to nip at Lupin’s ears later on for this.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Needle, use double kick!”

“Riptide, counter with a water gun attack!”

A stream of water jettisoned forward in a powerful gush, slamming into the charging Nidoran♂. The attack left the poison pin pokémon down for the count, and its trainer staring in disbelief across the road. Several seconds ticked by before the young boy jumped into action, skittering across the road toward his unconscious pokémon.

“Oh, man, that was intense. You did a good job, Needle, we’ll get you healed up at camp later.” To Lupin, he turned with a wide grin after recalling the Nidoran♂. “You were incredible. Your Totodile’s really strong!”

Riptide lifted his snout into the air smugly, puffing his chest out as he balanced on his hind legs. Lupin eyed him for a moment with a faint smile before turning to the other trainer. “Yeah, he’s something, all right. Is your Nidoran♂ gonna be okay?”

“Aw, Needle will be fine. He’s got tough skin,” the kid grinned again, and it was more evident that he was missing one of his teeth. “Oh, right. Sorry, I never introduced myself. Name’s Roland. I’m out here with my troop camping for a few weeks.”

“I ran into a few of them further down the road, I think,” Lupin answered, remembering the young girls and boys that were smattered here and there through Route Thirty-Two. They were all in scout uniforms, just like Roland, perfect for outdoor activities.

“A couple miles toward Violet City, right?”

“Yeah, just about,” Lupin said with a frown. “Isn’t your…I dunno, troop leader, I guess, supposed to keep you guys together or…?”

Roland grinned a third time and laughed. “We’re a little more prepared than the average camper, lady! We got our pokémon! Most we encounter in this area are Mareep herds, and there are plenty of Wooper, Hoppip and Rattata too. There’s a lot of Ekans around here as well, so be careful. You got plenty of antidotes, right?”

“Sure, yeah. You be careful and just…try to not get hurt, yeah?”

“Oh, we are, don’t you worry. Take care, lady, and thanks for the battle,” Roland said, waving to her as he started down the way Lupin had just come.

She stared after the young boy until he disappeared around a curve in the road before turning back to face south again. The land seemed to slope further down the farther they went, and now that they were above the break in trees on the road, Lupin could see that they were entering a small valley. In the far distance, a train suddenly snaked into view, winking silver in the sunlight as it sped along. It quickly disappeared behind hills and trees, but its horn was loud and resonant as it sounded off, even from miles away.

“The Magnet Train,” Riptide breathed. “It’s supposed to connect between Goldenrod here in Johto to Saffron over in Kanto.”

“Is there any other stations in between?”

“No. Not that I know of. I think it moves too fast to be able to slow down for interim stops.”

“How fast can it move? It was there and gone before we could blink,” Bullet yipped, staring between where it had first appeared, to where it had disappeared.

“I don’t know. Very fast,” Riptide sighed heavily, nodding toward the valley below. He noticed the shimmer of a river and lake, and if he strained, he could make out docks and cottages alongside the shore. Fishermen, most likely, he quietly concluded. “We’re wasting daylight. We should try to get down there before it gets too dark.”

The road took them straight to the valley floor with little fanfare or surprises, and just as they were pitching camp, the sun was slowly beginning to disappear behind the trees. The balmy weather seemed to remain, even as the sun soon disappeared beyond the horizon and a fire was sparked for the night. She allowed dinner to slowly cook as she finished setting the tent up and stowing her things away inside. Riptide found a nearby small pond to swim in, leaving Bullet by the campfire with Lupin.

He noticed when it had grown too quiet and looked to find Lupin playing with a bracelet over her wrist again. It glimmered faintly in the firelight, the orange and yellow glow playing on the metal band. It looked as though separate pieces had been tightly coiled and braided together and woven into a bangle, yet it was mellow and appeasing to the eye, nothing gaudy or overtly overcompensating. There weren’t any jewels, it was all white gold. He whined at her and she stopped twirling the bangle for a moment, looking at him, then at his empty dish.

“You still hungry?”

“No. Well, yes, I am, but…are you okay? You…you haven’t really been yourself. Not since we left Violet City…”

She stared at him, looking torn, as though she wanted to say one thing, but had thought better of it. She looked away and back into the crackling flames. Her other hand began twirling the bangle once again, picking along the grooves and knots of the metal design.

“I…I dunno. Maybe? Or no. I’m not sure anymore. It’s just…” She glanced up suddenly, looking to and fro, as though searching the forest around them for unwelcome eavesdroppers. The wolfish ears propped upon her ear twitched and swiveled, and Bullet’s did the same, although he was unsure of what _he_ was listening for. Her focus returned to the fire pit again.

“I thought I could trust the professor, is all. I mean, I do. But…he took something from me. He took… _this_. I didn’t even know it existed until he had Phillip bring it back, and…I can understand he was trying to act altruistically with helping me. He’s helped me plenty and I’m grateful. But he…took this from me.” She rattled the bangle on her wrist. “He was trying to…see if any known jewelers had made it for me, or someone put in a similar order perhaps track me down that way, and I get it. I do. I just…wish he’d asked first instead of just doing it.”

“Maybe he meant to and he forgot?” Bullet inputted, inching closer toward her. She didn’t look at him, but her lips pursed tightly together and her brow pinched close together. The eye visible to him was flashing clear yellow, reflecting the fire’s light in it. It reminded him of fire itself and he thought how pretty it looked on her.

“I…I dunno anymore. I didn’t want to say anything in front of Riptide. He really looks up to the professor. I’m not saying he’s a bad man. Maybe he _did_ forget. I just…kind of wish he didn’t just take this from me without asking, though. I’m surprised he didn’t take everything else and do the same thing. Like my knives or my dog tags.”

“Dog tags?” Bullet echoed.

Lupin moved at last, her eye flicking to glance at him while her hand stopped worrying the bangle on her wrist. She slowly reached for a beaded chain around her neck. He’s noticed it before, but had never seen what was on the end of it until now. Flat metal dangled at the end, rimmed by black rubber and he could see there were indents in them, like scratches.

“This is the only reason why I know my name. Or at least I hope is my name. For now, it’s all I’ve got on identity for myself. Name, birthday, and a rank for some reason.” She shrugged and slid the pendant back under her shirt with an annoyed sigh. “All useless unless it turns into a map or an address telling me where to go. I had nothing in my wallet, and my Book isn’t worth a damn either. It spouts off about…creatures and-and things I’ve never even heard of, except for what _I_ am and it sure as hell isn’t human or pokémon, or anything in-between. That’s why I look like _this_.”

She waved her hand in the vague direction of herself, and he knew what she meant: her tail and ears, both plain as day—or night, in this case—but always hidden from immediate sight. All it took was a long coat and a simple hat.

He stared at her, unsure of how to respond or maybe he wasn’t supposed to. He settled closer to her, resting his head on her thigh and she dug her fingers through his fur. It didn’t hurt when she combed through anymore. His fur was no longer matted and tangled like it used to be. He had her to thank for that. He had a lot to thank her for, like registering him as her pokémon instead of leaving him alone. Or she could have left him at the mercy of pokémon catchers like the ones that had come for him before. He missed his old trainer. Benjamin had been good to him, even if they didn’t live in a home. But he didn’t live in a home now either, but this was a different freedom. He was grateful for it.

The least he could do was comfort his new trainer, the same way he’d try to comfort his old one.

She said nothing more and neither did he, but the silence stretched on somewhat comfortably between them. Occasionally she’d worry at the bangle, twirling it over scarred wrists, and he briefly wondered what had happened to her. He was afraid of asking, though. They looked like burn scars.

Riptide returned not long after they had both lapsed into silence, still dribbling water as he lay close to the fire to dry off. Fire gleamed off his scales dully, yellow against blue, orange against red, while his eyes seemed to glimmer even brighter than ever. The sky was dark, leaving the fire the only light source around them. Not too far off, they could hear the soft gurgle of brook somewhere close by, perhaps the very same that fed into the pond Riptide had been lazing about in.

Shortly after his return, they tucked in for the night, resting up for the next leg in their journey to Azalea.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“What’s wrong with a Magikarp? I thought it evolved into that powerhouse, Gyarados.”

“Yes, true. Magikarp does evolve into Gyarados. But it’s also a weakling pokémon. It’s difficult to train _because_ it’s so weak. It gets swept downstream by even the lightest of currents all the time. The best you can do is throw it at a daycare provider and have them raise it, or else you’ll be burying a useless fish corpse before we even make it out of Union Cave. It’s not even worth eating, they barely have any meat on them.”

Riptide hissed and croaked in disgust while Lupin only frowned as she sat on the bank of river. A fishing pole sat in her hands, a gift given by a rather generous fisherman near the river docks they’d passed. “You’re so _picky_ with teammates. You wouldn’t accept Slate on the team—”

“Murderous rock snake.”

“You barely got along with Syd—”

“Birdbrain.”

“And you still pick on Bullet!”

“Dunderheaded thief.”

“ _Hey_!” The Growlithe barked resentfully.

“Riptide, _enough_. I don’t know how many times I’ve told you to stop being such a smarmy little jerk to everyone. Just because you’re smarter than most people, doesn’t mean you get to treat them like crap. Seriously. Do you _want_ me to keep you in your pokéball all the time and hardly ever let you out? Because that can be arranged real quick, real easy.”

She glowered at the Totodile at her side, ears pinned tightly against her head. Riptide stared at her in return, taken aback.

“ _I_ think you should,” Bullet muttered on the other side of Lupin.

There was a tense moment that passed between them all, one that practically electrified the air.

“Either you start putting a filter on that mouth of yours, or its travel time in the pokéball. Your choice.”

“Fish.”

“That…that’s not an option. And I’m not going to back down from this, I mean it—,”

“No, I meant you have a fish nibbling on your line. You’re going to lose it if you don’t reel it in.”

“What the—oh, oh! No, no, no, fishy, don’t go, I just want to catch you, c’mon little Magikarp—there you are—and don’t you think I’ve forgotten about this, Riptide, I swear to whatever passes as holy in this place, I haven’t!”

“Says the amnesiac, with a lost look on her face.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Hey, there, pretty lady! How ya doing today?”

Lupin eyed the skinny blond man blocking her path on the road, a loiterer no doubt. He was wrapped in a form-fitting trench coat and grubby, dark travel clothes, a pack slung carelessly by a strap on one shoulder. A rough-looking Meowth slunk around his legs, purring incessantly. Riptide glowered at the scratch pokémon and Bullet bristled, growling quietly. The Meowth paid neither of them any mind, its yellow eyes narrowed and focused on Lupin instead.

“I see you’ve been on the road for a little while, probably hungry, right? Well, little lady, I got me some really good food for sale, and at a pretty low price. ”

“Yeah, I’m gonna have to pass that up.”

“Oh, you haven’t even seen the product yet! It’ll stave away hunger for some time and it’s _quite_ delicious, if I can say so myself. What do ya say? Care to cash in on some of this Slowpoke Tail I got? It’s only nine-hundred ninety-nine thousand yen. What a deal, right? I mean, of _course_ it is! Usually, they run for a couple hundred thousand each!”

He grinned wider at the werewolf, unfazed by the glower she sent him, although he flinched at the deep-throated bark Bullet sent him. The Meowth yowled in surprise and hissed back, scruffy fur standing on end and tail puffing up in annoyance. Riptide hissed back, finally startling the man from his greedy stupor.

“Step. Aside. I’m not interested.”

“Sheesh. Broke, much? Fine. Move along. C’mon, Shiner. Let’s go.”

His demeanor changed entirely, but Lupin was already stepping past him, unperturbed. When they were well out earshot, Lupin glanced at the Totodile on her shoulder.

“Slowpoke tails?”

“Black market foods. It was considered a delicacy a long time ago, before it was outlawed here in Johto and Kanto years ago. I’m not sure if it was in the other regions, though.”

“…there’s a black market on food here?” Lupin found that a little hard to believe. Riptide huffed.

“There is when it involves chopping off the tails of living pokémon, then throwing the mutilated creatures back to the wilds to bleed to death.”

“What?! That’s _horrible_! Who would _do_ that to pokémon?” Bullet yelped, ears pressing to his head in dismay.

“Poachers,” Lupin provided. Riptide nodded glumly.

“There are some who still hunt down wild Feraligatr to skin them for their scales and crests. Our hides used to fetch a high price several hundred years ago. They still do, although more people are spiriting away wild pokémon to sell in an underground battling black market nowadays. They sell strong pokémon to the highest bidder, completely ignoring whether that person will care for their newly won prize, or if they even have the right stuff to handle a potentially dangerous pokémon or not. All they care about is the money. And that doesn’t mean there aren’t people out there who still indulge in eating pokémon…or parts of them, anyway. Shellder harvesting, for example, was outlawed almost thirty years ago because they were becoming an endangered species, yet rich froufrou humans still enjoy sucking the meat out of their shells these days...”

“…just how much about this stuff do you _know_ about?”

“The professor, of course. He’s an avid protestor against pokémon cruelty and doesn’t hesitate in swinging his weight around when it involves shutting down poacher and black marker sales operations. I’m sure he’d be interested in knowing that someone is taking it upon themselves to act as a sales vendor out here for Slowpoke tails.”

He enunciated his last words, tilting his head to peer at Lupin critically, his crooked grin seemingly twisted upwards even more. His yellow-red eyes gleamed knowingly and she took that as a cue to pull out her pokégear and dial the professor’s number. Bullet cast a glance over his shoulder where the skinny man had been lurking on the road and growled.

Riptide rattle-laughed.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

“Welcome to Route Thirty-Two’s Pokemon Center, ma’am! How’re you and your team feeling today?”

_Another Nurse Joy? Are they clones or something?_

Despite her reserved thoughts, Lupin smiled nonetheless back at the pink-haired woman, offering the tray to her. Two pokéballs were nestled in it.

“We just need a quick boost before hitting Union Cave.”

“Not at all! We see a lot of traffic coming through here, especially at this time of the year. In fact, quite a number went through just the other day. It’s a great training ground for trainers,” Nurse Joy exclaimed with a smile, taking the tray. After pausing to scan Lupin’s trainer card, she turned to the machine behind the lobby desk and slid the tray into a compartment with a Plexiglas cover. Sliding it shut, she pressed a few buttons on a keypad. The machine hummed and a screen facing outboard from the wall showed Riptide and Bullet’s information under a picture of each of them.

“Hey, Nurse Joy, I had a question. Why is it that registered trainers get free healings like this, but everyone else has to pay?”

“Each trainer is registered under the Pokémon League, young or old. This machine shouldn’t cost anything to heal your pokémon if they’re already in good condition while you’re registered under a league. Any further service, such as severe mutilation, mauling, stitches, or prolonged sicknesses requires a payment. And your records show you previously had a lab tech assistant license. You had to pay for things like this when you still had it, correct?”

“Well, yes…”

Nurse Joy smiled at her. “If you had a breeder’s license, instead of a training license, you’d also be subjected to a payment, although you’d probably have to pay less than what you did when you were a lab assistant, for example. It all depends on what you’re licensed for.” She paused when the machine behind her dinged and she turned back to fetch the tray. “However, all pokémon centers also accept donations. Every little bit helps, especially when it goes to the upkeep, maintenance, medicine, and other supplies used to help heal pokémon.”

Lupin considered her words, briefly, before pulling out her wallet and producing a few bills to the other woman. Nurse Joy accepted it and gave a small bow with her head.

“Thank you for your donation! And your pokémon are at full health. Please be careful as you head through the cave. There are some Onix and Zubat present and they can be a little tricky sometimes.”

The werewolf left the center with those words ringing in her ears, blinking into the harsh afternoon sun. Releasing Riptide and Bullet, she stooped to pick up the Totodile, but he slid from her grip and waved her off with a paw.

“No, no. I need to start walking on my own. I’ll be too big for your shoulders soon, in case you haven’t noticed. I’ve crested.”

She gave him a boggled stare, and he sighed before motioning to his head with a stubby paw.

“My skull. Noticed anything different?”

It took her a moment, but it became apparent after she stared for several long seconds.

“Oh! You—that red horn, it wasn’t there before!”

“Crest,” Riptide corrected sharply. “I’ll evolve soon and I need to build more strength in my legs. I can’t afford to be carried around anymore or I won’t have as easy a time running around as a Croconaw.” He turned, his tail dragging while he wobbled further down the road. It was longer now than several weeks ago, Lupin noted. And his front arms weren’t as stubby anymore, either. Bullet trotted alongside the Totodile, looking smugly at the gator.

“Not so easy down here, now, is it?”

“Shut it, fuzzball, or I’ll soak you to the bone with a water gun.” Riptide grumbled back with a hiss.

“Shutting up now,” Bullet quickly replied, scurrying ahead with a wag to his tail. “C’mon, we’re losing daylight; we don’t wanna be stuck in this cave overnight!”

Lupin watched the Growlithe shortly, then turned to Riptide.

“Are you sure you’ll be all right?”

“I’ll be fine. But he’s right, you know. We don’t want to be stuck in a cave all night, especially when the Zubat start stirring up and causing all sorts of confusion tactics to trip us up. Nasty little flying rats…”

With that said, he jerked his head forward and waddled forward, his steps less wobbly the longer he went. Lupin paced beside him, her hand slowly drifting up to worry at the bangle on her wrist. Riptide watched on occasion from the corner of his eye. A part of him wanted to speak up about it. Another worried what she’d say if he did.

He knew about the bangle, and the professor’s attempts to help. He also remembered the professor trying to identify her once they were certain she was breathing the night they pulled her out of the water. So much had happened in such a little time frame that it all seemed like a distant, fuzzy memory. And yet at the same time, he could recall it with such clarity, it hurt more now than it did back then. Especially since he knew and cared about her.

So he continued to say nothing, unsure of how to proceed. Perhaps he’d talk to her later that night when they had less traveling to focus on, especially once they were through Union Cave.

That seemed like a solid plan.

 **OoOoOoOoOoO**


End file.
